Ever wonder what Congress did in response to the San Bernardino terrorist massacre? Lawfare‘s Jack Goldsmith and Amira Mikhail happen to mention one of the items in a larger context:
Last November, in response to the San Bernadino attacks, Congress enacted the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015. Among other things, the 2015 Act excludes from the VWP
[U.S. Visa Waiver Program][old link invalid, here’s the new link – U.S. Visa Waiver Program – thanks to an observant reader] those travelers from VWP countries who are also Iranian citizens or who have traveled to Iran since March 1, 2011.
Iran. So the terrorists, must have been from Iran, right? No. Rizwan Farook was born in Chicago to Pakistani parents, and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, emigrated from Pakistan, after spending time in Saudi Arabia.
It’s interesting how Congress remains fixated on Iran in relation to events that have no apparent relation to Iran. Goldsmith and Mikhail mention the Iranian reaction to the VWP in passing; AL Monitor covers it in more detail:
“Now it is clear that this new legislation is simply absurd because no Iranian nor anybody who visited Iran had anything to do with the tragedies that have taken place in Paris or in San Bernardino or anywhere else,” Zarif said. “But they’re being the targets. I think it discredits those who pass these legislations, those who adopt them and those who implement them more than anything else. And it sends a very bad signal to the Iranians that the US is bent on hostile policy toward Iran, no matter what.”
Another article from AL Monitor clarifies the Congressional intent:
The House Foreign Affairs Committee is scheduled to vote Jan. 7 on legislation to create a plan to combat international travel by terrorists and other foreign fighters. The bill, from panel member Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., notably requires the State Department to single out at-risk countries that fail to meet “minimum standards” for combating travel by foreign fighters.
“The vulnerabilities that currently exist with international security abroad pose a concerning threat to our homeland,” Zeldin said in a statement. “The development of international border security standards is critical. With the rise of terrorism at home and around the world, it’s essential that we work together as a global community to monitor and stop the movement of terrorists.”
So perhaps Congress is prudent after all. Or would be, if they could write a decent bill, as documented by Goldsmith and Mikhail. But that’s a different topic.
[EDIT updated an out of date link 2/7/2018]
