Released by United States Senator Bill Cassidey of Louisiana – November 1, 2023
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ted Budd (R-NC), and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced the Terrorist Inadmissibility Codification Act to combat the spread of pro-Hamas and pro-terrorist activity. This bill would expand current U.S. law to prohibit members, officers, officials, representatives, and spokesmen of Hamas, Hezbollah, Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and Palestine Islamic Jihad from entering, or remaining in, the U.S. The bill would also apply to aliens who endorse or espouse terrorist activities conducted by any of these U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
“There is no place in America for those who proudly represent terrorist groups and spread hate and violence,” said Dr. Cassidy.
“Foreign adversaries and terrorist sympathizers have no place in America. As we continue to face an increase in pro-Hamas sentiment, it’s in our national security interest to ensure foreign nationals seeking to harm our nation are prohibited entry. Those that are already here must be removed,” said Senator Rubio.
U.S. Representative Austin Pfluger (R-TX-11) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
Background
Following the October 7th terrorist attacks in Israel, pro-Hamas demonstrations swept across the U.S., including by foreign nationals. Under federal law, individuals who endorse or espouse terrorist activity are inadmissible. Current law explicitly states that members of certain groups, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), are not permitted in the U.S. However, the PLO is not the only group that should be banned in our nation.
