Wall or Sieve? Attacks Raise Doubts About U.S. Immigration System

[TBoneTX 49,608]

Very thoughtful piece.  Comments on it?

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Wall or Sieve?  Attacks Raise Doubts About U.S. Immigration System

 

In the wee hours of Sunday, March 1, a Senegalese immigrant clad in a sweatshirt bearing the words "Property of Allah" opened fire outside an Austin, Texas beer garden, killing three and leaving 14 others wounded.

On March 12, at Old Dominion University, a former Virginia National Guard member from Sierra Leone – released early from an 11-year prison sentence for attempting to provide material support to the ISIL – yelled "Allahu Akbar" before shooting and killing a beloved college professor and wounding two other people.

 

That same day, a Lebanese immigrant plowed a pickup truck filled with fireworks and gasoline into a large synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan.  After exchanging gunfire with security staff, he killed himself.  His brother, it turned out, was a recently eliminated Hezbollah commander in Lebanon.

Amidst the emerging threat environment of the Iran war, these and other attacks on U.S. soil have reignited questions about the U.S. immigration system's vetting and screening standards.  Republican leaders are increasingly asking how, for example, foreign nationals like the Afghan evacuee who shot two National Guard members in Washington, D.C. – killing one of them – or the Egyptian national overstaying his tourism visa who firebombed pro-Israel demonstrators in Colorado last year were able to come here and commit such acts.  They are also asking how close relatives of top Iranian officials, including avowed supporters of that country's regime, have been allowed to live and work in the United States.  [...]

 

https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2026/04/09/wall_or_sieve_attacks_raise_questions_on_immigration_system_1175483.html

[mam521 3,045]

Couple of comments: 

 

1. What does one expect when the entire process is funded by fees?  That, in and of itself, is a threat to national security. Add to that the training doesn't appear to be equal across the board, so how are rules being applied?  We've seen inconsistencies from the members here.  

2. The supposed layers of checks and balances leave holes.  How is it that DoS can issue a passport, but USCIS doesn't have any knowledge or recognition of a person being a citizen?  Why do we have SAVE if the information contained isn't interagency and aligned?  Why are IR's subject to individual petitions, but FP categories allowed derivatives on the same petition?  Inconsistencies are rampant throughout US government and most certainly not exclusive to immigration. 

3. US Citizenship can be purchased, if you have enough money.  Trump's Gold Card visa is purchasing PR.  Put the time in and voila!  Citizenship is yours

4. The US Immigration system is largely family based; the points based systems in other countries tend to scrutinize applicants differently.  Additionally, the family based system allows so many derivatives, it's crazy. 

5. Unpopular opinion but AOS is a load of 💩 in the way it's currently applied.  A person comes to visit, where it states people aren't intensively vetted, and decide there's been a life event and they stay and adjust.  Yeah, other countries do it too, but there are restrictions on the visa types that can adjust.  

6. Consular processing, at least at some consulates, seem to do a deeper dive into who they're issuing visas for, versus those that are within the US. 

7. The system is so backlogged that people who do try to follow the rules are punished in immi purgatory, waiting for an answer; it's easier to jump the line and claim asylum where the bad behavior is rewarded.  It dilutes the system for true asylum seekers. 

 

There's a lot of focus on Islam in this article, but statistics show Islamic terroristic incidents are lower but tend to have a greater lethality and these numbers are largely impacted by 9/11 because it was a large casualty event.  Over half of the domestic terrorist attacks in the US have actually been by homegrown, right wing extremists and account for the majority of the incidents, with the OKC Bombing being the second most deadly terrorist act after 9/11.  Additionally, Pakistan is considered one of the greatest terroristic countries out there, but they're negotiating the ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz?  Make it make sense!  

[TBoneTX 49,608]

13 hours ago, mam521 said:

Couple of comments

Now, tell us how you really feel, mam ma'am.   

 

I think that a whole lot would clear itself up if law is revised to say "No AOS from tourist visas, period."