Vote Against H.R.4038, the American SAFE Act of 2015

posted on: Nov 19, 2015

Tomorrow, November 19, 2015, the House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 4038, the American SAFE Act of 2015. This bill was introduced by Homeland Security Chairman Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) as a reaction to the recent heinous attacks that occurred in Paris, France. While this bill seeks to enhance our national security, in reality, it tastelessly takes advantage of the recent tragedy in Paris, France to strengthen the politics of fear and seeks to enforce unreasonable security requirements on the U.S. admission of Syrian refugees.

The reality is that the U.S. already implements the most thorough vetting process for refugees in the world. Calls to end the resettlement of Syrian refugees are rooted in a lack of knowledge about the refugee vetting process or bigotry. The multipart process, which can take up to two years to complete, involves the UNHCR and a diverse array of U.S. federal agencies including the Department of State, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Counterterrorism Center, Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Health and Human Services.

H.R. 4038, the American SAFE Act of 2015, should be voted against for the following reasons:

It unfairly and exclusively imposes enhanced U.S. refugee vetting standards on Iraqi and Syrian nationals
As President Obama declared, this bill requires an untenable certification from the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Director of National Intelligence that an Iraqi or Syrian national applying for U.S. refugee admission is not a threat
It exploits the current climate of fear
We need you to take the following actions to ensure that this type of legislation does not pass the House of Representatives:

Contact your member of Congress and call on them to vote against H.R.4038
Share this infographic, which provides an overview of the vetting process for Syrian refugees, with your friends, family and elected officials

Source: www.aaiusa.org