Critics of last night’s vote, such as Democrat Keith Ellison, said the bill goes too far by stripping visa waiver privileges from all Syrian and Iraqi nations and said it should include more exceptions for more people, such as journalists and researchers, who America is famously suspicious of anyway.
Advertisement
The bill would also require all 38 countries to check travelers against INTERPOL databases to determine whether they have been wanted by law enforcement for terrorist or criminal activity.
Senators Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, and Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican, originally authored the proposal with these provisions as a bipartisan alternative to legislation passed by the House in the immediate aftermath of the Paris attacks that would make it more hard for refugees from Syria and Iraq to enter the US.
“This legislation will help close gaping security gaps and improve our ability to stop unsafe individuals before they reach our shores”, said Republican Representative Michael McCaul, the House Homeland Security Committee chairman.
The visa-waiver changes may be attached to a must-pass spending bill to fund government operations that Congress is expected to approve by the end of the week to avoid a federal shutdown.
It allows citizens of 38 countries to travel to the United States without a visa for stays of 90 days or less.
Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to terminate a country from participating in the VWP if it does not share data on suspicious travelers and disallows reentry into the program until it complies with all data sharing requirements.
The visa-waiver program began in 1986 to ease travel between developed countries, including most of Europe and some other countries, such as Australia, Japan and South Korea.
Congressman Tim Walberg: “It is common sense to prioritize the safety of the American people and increase our defenses against the threat of terrorism”.
The European Commission is already miffed that while Americans enjoy visa-free travel in the EU, many of its citizens from eastern European countries, including those from Poland have to apply for a permit before travelling to the USA, the report added.
But Democratic leaders are predicting that when it comes up, their members will back the House visa waiver measure in large numbers.
Following news that the female suspect who participated in the San Bernardino shootings came to the United States on a fiancé visa, some lawmakers have been contemplating changes to that program.
Advertisement
Even backers of the legislation acknowledge it will not eliminate the risk of terrorists with ties to Islamic State or other militant groups entering the U.S.to launch attacks. The travel industry also warned lawmakers against hasty revisions to a time tested system. Included in his proposal was to require e-passports with biometric information for all travelers to the U.S.to minimize the chances of forgery.
