WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) delivered remarks on the Senate floor slamming former President Joe Biden’s scheme to make illegal immigration legal through “Operation Allies Welcome,” a program his administration launched following his disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal.

Despite the Biden administration’s claim that Afghan nationals were properly vetted, a 2022 Inspector General report found that evacuees who were not fully vetted were admitted or paroled into the U.S. The suspect charged with the murder of National Guard soldier Sarah Beckstrom and the shooting of Guardsman Andrew Wolfe entered the country through this program. 

Click here to download Senator Blackburn’s remarks on the Senate floor.

REMARKS AS PREPARED

Suspect Charged in Shooting of Two National Guard Members Is an Afghan National Let in Under Biden

Last week—the day before Thanksgiving—our nation’s capital experienced a horrific tragedy.

Just blocks from the White House, two National Guard members were ambushed by a gunman.

One of the victims—20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom—tragically succumbed to her wounds.

The second—24-year-old Andrew Wolfe—is currently fighting for his life.

These two young, brave, and patriotic Americans answered the call of duty to serve their nation in uniform. And for that, they were gunned down in cold blood.

What do we know about the shooting suspect? He is a 29-year-old Afghan national. And he entered our country in 2021 during President Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.

He is among nearly 200,000 Afghan nationals who were relocated to our country by the Biden administration under Operation Allies Welcome.

This program was part of Biden’s larger effort to make illegal immigration legal.

In 2021, Blackburn Demanded Answers from the Biden Administration on Afghan Migrant Vetting

At the time, my Republican colleagues and I demanded answers from the administration about how they were possibly vetting all the evacuees amid the chaotic withdrawal.

We must never forget that 13 U.S. service members were murdered by a suicide bomber at Abbey Gate during the evacuation—including Staff Sergeant Ryan Knauss of Tennessee.

The Biden Administration Lied to the American People About Afghan Vetting

The Biden administration, however, insisted that the evacuees were properly vetted.

The morning after the Abbey Gate bombing, Biden’s Press Secretary, Jen Psaki, told the American people that all Afghan nationals were ‘screened and vetted prior to being allowed into the United States.’

That was a lie—a lie that has now cost the life of a U.S. service member.

In 2022, an inspector general report from the Department of Homeland Security found that the Biden administration ‘admitted or paroled evacuees who were not fully vetted into the United States,’ noting that ‘some information used to vet evacuees through U.S. government databases … was inaccurate, incomplete, or missing.’

President Trump Is Taking Decisive Action to Strengthen Vetting

We can be grateful that President Trump is taking decisive action to strengthen vetting and prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again.

He’s halted visas for Afghan nationals and bolstered the vetting process for aliens from 19 high-risk countries.

This is what it looks like when a President puts the American people first. And Congress should do everything possible to work with DHS and support these necessary efforts.