The House wasted time by passing a feel-good measure to reassure Americans after the terrorist attacks on Paris, instead of approving legislation that would actually make them safer, a White House spokesman charged on Monday.
“I think those who voted to further encumber the refugee process are accountable for their vote,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. “And I think they’ll have to explain why they voted in that way.”
The GOP bill that would boost the U.S. entrance requirements for refugees fleeing the fighting in Iraq and Syria passed with the help of 47 Democrats, but Earnest said the bill would only bog down the already lengthy security vetting process.
The White House has been in discussions with some senators to tweak the visa-waiver program that allows travelers from certain countries to enter the U.S. without a visa, Earnest said. Passing legislation to make that change “actually could further enhance our national security.”
Congress could also restrict certain gun sales to make America safer, he said.
“Right now, there’s not a law on the books that prevents an individual who is already in the United States — and that we already know is suspected of having links to terrorism” from buying a gun, Earnest charged.
“If lawmakers actually wanted to make Americans safer, they’d pass a law that would prevent somebody who’s on the terror watch list from being able to buy a gun,” he added.
“This is particularly ironic because the concerns that were expressed by some members of Congress were about individuals who are not in the United States, and will be subjected to a process of spending two years convincing national security officials that they don’t have links to terrorism,” he said, alluding to the average 18-to-24 month wait Syrian and Iraqi refugees have to wait to enter the country.
“But instead, members of Congress are prepared to allow those individuals who are already in the United States, and are suspected of having links to terrorism” to purchase firearms, he said before taking a jab at the National Rife Association.
“And I think that is a pretty clear indication that Republicans in Congress are more interested in playing politics, and more scared of the NRA than they are concerned about doing the right thing for our national security,” Earnest said.
The House bill “may be effective as a piece of political rhetoric, but it’s not going to do anything to improve the national security of the United States,” he said.
