Congressman Jared Polis. (Cliff Grassmick )
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Jared Polis bucked the White House and most of his party on Thursday when the Boulder Democrat voted with 242 Republicans and just 47 Democrats to pass a bill that takes aim at security requirements for Iraqis and Syrians seeking refuge in the U.S.
The measure, nicknamed the SAFE Act, would add a new layer of vetting for refugees from those countries, both of which have been terrorized by violence fueled by the Islamic State or ISIS. Notably the legislation forces the FBI to certify to intelligence officials and Homeland Security that each refugee has received a background investigation that is sufficient to determine whether the covered alien is a threat to the security of the United States, according to the bill.
President Barack Obama on Wednesday threatened to veto the measure and the legislation has taken fire from traditional Democratic allies such as the ACLU. In a statement, administration officials argued the bill would introduce unnecessary and impractical requirements that would unacceptably hamper our efforts to assist some of the most vulnerable people in the world.
The two other Colorado Democrats in the House — Ed Perlmutter and Diana DeGette — voted against the bill. In a press release, Perlmutter described the current vetting system as one of the most robust and extensive in the world. As part of its opposition to the measure, the White House has noted that nearly 2,200 Syrian refugees have been admitted to the U.S. since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and that not a single one has been arrested or deported on terrorism-related grounds.
In an interview, Polis said he understood the administration s arguments against the bill but was unconvinced.
I reviewed the bill last night. I met with administration officials this morning and I wasn t persuaded that … the security measures in the bill would, in any way, stop us from receiving more refugees, he said. If the administration has other ideas (or) better ideas about improving the vetting process, then I look forward to being able to support those as well.
However Polis said he also supported Gov. John Hickenlooper, who took fire earlier this week by declaring that Colorado . I think the governor is absolutely appropriate and I applaud him for continuing our proud Colorado tradition of providing a safe place for families that are victims of global violence, Polis said.
Asked whether he saw a contradiction in these views, Polis said he wanted to merge better security with the admission of more refugees.
I think we should pair (a policy of) increasing the number of refugees that we allow with more effective and better ways of vetting refugees, he said.
The bill heads next to the Senate, where lawmakers aren t expect to tackle the issue until after the Thanksgiving holiday.
