Top Dems to AG Sessions, Secretary Nielsen: Flawed and Misleading Report is a Blatant Political Attempt to Link Immigration & Terrorism
(WASHINGTON) – Today, Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson, Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joseph Crowley, Oversight & Government Reform Committee Ranking Member Elijah Cummings, Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Eliot Engel, Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Adam Schiff, and Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen and Attorney General Sessions to point out numerous critical flaws and misleading statistics in their recent report attempting to link immigration and terrorism.
“These flaws call into question whether the Administration is more interested in supporting the President’s political objectives with skewed data than responsibly engaging with Congress and the American people on immigration and border security.”
“It has come to our attention that career professionals at the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics, who have the data and expertise necessary to analyze immigration and terrorism-related statistics, did not produce the report. Instead, it appears the report was drafted at the behest of political appointees intent on undermining ongoing immigration negotiations by manipulating data to link immigrants to terrorism. While we are no longer surprised by the Trump Administration’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and fearmongering, we believe it is important to set the record straight about the statistics presented to provide proper context for the American people.”
“As Members of Congress serving on Committees charged with helping to secure the homeland and prevent terrorism, we take our responsibility very seriously. We cannot stand by while the Trump Administration demonizes immigrants and foments fear in the American people by issuing misleading reports to support a political agenda. We expect that if you issue future reports pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order 13780 or any other Presidential directive, you will provide thorough, objective data that address our Nation’s security challenges accurately and responsibly.”
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Media contact:
Adam Comis (Thompson), 202-225-9978
Shadawn Reddick-Smith/Daniel Schwarz (Nadler), 202- 225-6906 or 202-225-5635
Lauren French (Crowley), 202-225-1400
Jennifer Werner/Aryele Bradford (Cummings), 202-226-5181
Tim Mulvey (Engel), 202-226-9103
Patrick Boland (Schiff), 202-225-4176
Peter Whippy, (Lofgren), 202-225-3072
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