Over a veto threat by President Obama, the House passed Rep. Michael T. McCaul's (R., TX) American SAFE (Security Against Foreign Enemies) Act of 2015. The bill now heads to the Senate. According the White House's Statement of Administration policy, the measure would:
This legislation would introduce unnecessary and impractical
requirements that would unacceptably hamper our efforts to assist some of the most vulnerable
people in the world, many of whom are victims of terrorism, and would undermine our partners
in the Middle East and Europe in addressing the Syrian refugee crisis. ...
The certification requirement at the core of H.R. 4038 is untenable and would provide no
meaningful additional security for the American people, instead serving only to create significant
delays and obstacles in the fulfillment of a vital program that satisfies both humanitarian and
national security objectives. 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.
Thus, the substantive result sought through this draft legislation is already embedded into the
program.
