The House didn’t much care for Obama’s veto threat as they passed the American Security Against Foreign Enemies Act that curbs refugees from Iraq and Syria with a bipartisan veto-proof majority:
CNS NEWS – In a stinging rebuke to President Barack Obama by Republicans and Democrats, the House ignored a veto threat Thursday and overwhelmingly approved GOP legislation erecting fresh hurdles for Syrian and Iraqi refugees trying to enter the United States.
Forty-seven Democrats joined all but two Republicans as the House passed the measure by a veto-proof 289-137 margin, a major setback to the lame duck president on an issue —the Islamic State group and the refugees fleeing it — that shows no signs of easing. The vote exceeded the two-thirds majority required to override a veto, and came despite a rushed, early morning visit to the Capitol by senior administration officials in a futile attempt to limit Democratic defections.
Republicans said that in dangerous times, the government must first protect its own.
“It is against the values of our nation and the values of a free society to give terrorists the opening they are looking for” by not tightening entry restrictions, said House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
The 47 Democrats who backed the bill, largely moderates and lawmakers facing potentially tough re-elections, were joined by 242 Republicans. Voting no were 135 Democrats and two Republicans, North Carolina Rep. Walter Jones and Iowa Rep. Steve King.
I guess 47 Democrats apparently have more sense than Steve King and Walter Jones on this issue.
Here’s more about what exactly the bill does:
The measure, which in effect would suspend admissions of Syrian and Iraqi refugees, would require the FBI to conduct background checks on people coming to the U.S. from those countries. It would oblige the heads of the FBI and Homeland Security Department and the director of national intelligence to certify to Congress that each refugee “is not a threat to the security of the United States.”
So the bill has to go to the Senate now, where hopefully it will get the same bipartisan treatment.
UPDATE: So it looks like Steve King was more right than I alluded to above.
Here’s what King had to say to The Blaze:
“I voted against the American SAFE Act because it fails to restore Congress’ Article 1 authority over admissions of migrants to the United States,” King said in a statement provided to TheBlaze.
“How can we trust this Obama Administration who will not utter the words ‘radical Islamic jihad’ to accurately screen Syrian and Iraqi refugees as required in this bill?” King continued. “For that reason, I submitted an amendment to Rules, which was ultimately not adopted, that would create international safe zones for refugees in their homeland. The safety and security of the American people is paramount. I respect the House trying to find a solution, but I do not believe this was the right or strong enough one.”
Fore more on this, see here.