U.s. congressman Rodney davis proudly representing the 13th district of illinois

Washington, DC – U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) today voted for the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act to ensure comprehensive background checks are conducted on every refugee from Syria and Iraq seeking admittance into the United States.

“Our first priority must be protecting the American people against possible terrorist attacks,” said Davis. “The president’s own advisors have warned of gaps within our screening process and ISIS’s ability to infiltrate Syrian refugees. I hope President Obama will reconsider his threat to veto this important legislation and instead work with us to ensure Americans’ safety. The SAFE Act allows America to continue its history of compassion toward those around the world without sacrificing our safety and security.”

The SAFE Act requires the FBI director to certify the background investigation of each refugee and then the secretary of homeland security, the FBI director, and the director of national intelligence must all certify to Congress that each refugee is not a security threat before they can be admitted to the U.S.

Earlier this week, Davis and other members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation sent a letter urging President Obama to engage in a comprehensive strategy with our allies to defeat ISIS and suspend the flow of Syrian and Iraqi refugees into the U.S. Click here for text of the letter. Additionally, Governor Rauner announced Monday that Illinois would temporarily stop accepting Syrian refugees following the Paris terrorist attacks.

French and other European officials have said that at least one attacker used the flow of Syrian refugees to gain entry into the European Union. Senior U.S. government officials have expressed concerns that the flow of Syrian refugees could also be used to enter the United States. In September 2015, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper expressed a “huge concern” that ISIS may attempt to infiltrate Syrian refugees to enter Europe and possibly the United States. In October 2015, FBI Director James Comey expressed concerns about the U.S. government’s ability to vet all Syrian refugees.

“My concern there is there are certain gaps ... in the data available to us,” Director Comey said at the time. “There is risk associated of bringing anybody in from the outside, but specifically from a conflict zone like that."

Despite these concerns and the Paris terrorist attacks, President Obama has stated that he plans to move forward with his plan to resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year. Since 2012, the United States has admitted 1,854 Syrian refugees.