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Guest Commentary: October 18, 2001
Safer Borders The Honorable Christopher Bond
In the days following the terrible September 11th attacks in New York and at that Pentagon, we have learned that the terrorists exploited loopholes in our immigration laws.
While nine of the 19 suspected terrorists apparently came to this country legally, three others stayed here beyond their visa deadlines. Six other terrorists somehow entered this country without leaving any records behind them.
In hindsight, this obviously should not have happened. We ought to do a better job of protecting our families from foreign terrorists who want to infiltrate our country.
Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) data show that half of the estimated 6 to 11 million illegal aliens we believe to be in the U.S. are those who overstayed their temporary visas. That number grows by about 125,000 each year, according to INS.
To fix this problem, I have introduced the Visa Integrity and Security Act. This legislation will boost our ability to identify, locate or remove foreigners who deliberately remain in this country long after their tourist or student visas expire. Our nation has now seen the terrible dangers associated with failing to enforce visa deadlines. We have a duty to make this country safer for Americans and legal foreign visitors who follow the rules.
This bill makes sense. I am hopeful that the Senate will approve of this legislation.
The most important part of this legislation calls for foreign visitors to the United States to be issued with tamper-proof visas that contain biometric information.
Just like the electronic information stored on a credit card, visas can store biometric information like a digitized thumb-print, retinal eye or facial pattern scan.
This will make it easier for American law enforcement or intelligence agencies to identify potential terrorists or criminals. The goal is to keep them out of the country or, if some come in make it easier to deport them once identified.
The legislation would also create a computerized record of when foreign visa holders enter and exit the United States. This will help the United States government track people who overstay their visas.
My legislation would also crack down on potential loopholes in the Visa Waiver program, which allows citizens of 29 countries to enter the United States without a visa. Specifically, it would pressure friendly nations to make it more difficult to counterfeit or otherwise tamper with their passports.
While I have called for the closing of loopholes in our immigration laws apparently exploited by terrorists, I know that our nation must remain open to the world.
Our nation's economic, educational and cultural strengths are the engines transforming the whole world into a better version of itself. We must continue to share our strengths with our friends overseas.
I believe we can do this while also boosting security at home.
We live in a world much different than the one that existed before September 11th. We must all work together to make sure it is a better world - one that is more safe for our children and future generations of Americans.
Note: Sen. Bond writes an occassional commentary. The above column has been adapted from his October 2001 commentary, first published on his Senate website.
