House passes bill to block Syrian refugees, require more vetting

WASHINGTON — The House passed a bill Thursday to halt the admission of Syrian refugees into the U.S. until they undergo a more stringent vetting process — the strictest ever required for people fleeing a war-torn nation.

The legislation, passed by a vote of 289-137, was rushed through in response to last week's terrorist attacks in Paris. One of the terrorists is believed to have entered Europe through Greece with a group of Syrian refugees, sparking calls by congressional leaders to "pause" the flow of refugees into the U.S. from Syria and Iraq.

Forty-seven Democrats joined 242 Republicans to create a veto-proof majority voting for the bill. Two Republicans — Reps. Walter Jones of North Carolina and Steve King of Iowa — joined 135 Democrats in voting against the legislation.

The bill requires the nation’s three top security officials — the Homeland Security secretary, FBI director and national intelligence director — to certify to Congress that each Syrian or Iraqi refugee is not a security threat before the refugee can be admitted into the U.S.

The White House has issued a veto threat, saying that the bill would create significant delays and obstacles for refugees without providing meaningful additional security for Americans. The legislation still must be voted on by the Senate, where Democratic leaders say they will move to block the bill.

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The bill's supporters said the legislation would help ensure that Islamic State terrorists will not slip into the U.S. along with refugees.

"We are a nation at war," said Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who introduced the bill with Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C. "The streets of Paris could just as easily have been the streets of New York, Chicago, Houston or Los Angeles ... We must take decisive action to show the American people that we are doing all we can to protect them."

Opponents of the bill said there already is a vigorous 18-month to 24-month vetting process for refugees. They argued that the bill's new requirements would effectively shut down the U.S. refugee resettlement program for Syrians.

"We face a choice that will echo through history," said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., who reminded lawmakers that the U.S. turned away Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Germany in 1939. "We must not let ourselves be guided by irrational fear."

President Obama plans to bring in up to 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year. Roughly 11 million Syrians, almost half the nation's population, have fled their homes since the civil war broke out in 2011, and about 4 million have left their country.

The White House said that 2,174 Syrian refugees have been admitted to the United States since Sept. 11, 2001, and "not a single one has been arrested or deported on terrorism-related grounds."

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The current screening process for refugees is done by the the National Counterterrorism Center, the FBI and the departments of Homeland Security, State and Defense. The background checks include fingerprinting, medical screenings and lengthy interviews of refugees before they enter the U.S.

"No refugee is approved for travel to the United States under the current system until the full array of required security vetting measures have been completed," said a White House statement issued Wednesday.

But Republicans pointed to recent congressional testimony from FBI Director James Comey acknowledging the challenges of trying to vet Syrian refugees. Comey testified last month that it is difficult for U.S. officials to collect information on Syrians in the midst of that nation's civil war. The U.S. is backing moderate rebels seeking to topple dictator Bashar Assad.

"If someone has not made a ripple in the pond in Syria in a way that would get their identity or their interests reflected in our databases, we can query our data until the cows come home but nothing will show up because we have no record of that person," Comey told the House Homeland Security Committee in October.

McCaul and Hudson said the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act would create the most robust national security vetting process in history for any refugee population.

In addition to requiring the top three national security officials to certify refugees, it requires the FBI director to certify the background investigation of each refugee. It also requires the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general to independently assess the refugee approvals to prevent high-risk people from being admitted.

"America is a compassionate country," Hudson said. "But we owe it to the American people to know who these people are."

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Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, the senior Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, called the bill "an extreme overreaction."

"It would effectively deny refugee status for Syrians and Iraqis who are victims of terrorism in their own homelands," Conyers said. "Rather than betraying our values, we must continue to focus on the most effective means to keep us safe while also providing protection for the world's most vulnerable."

In the Senate, Jeff Flake of Arizona and Dianne Feinstein of California introduced legislation Thursday to disqualify Europeans and other foreign citizens from being granted a visa waiver to enter the U.S. if they have traveled to Syria or Iraq within the past five years. The U.S. has a program that exempts the citizens of about 40 nations — all strong U.S. allies — from having to get visas to enter the country.