John Cornyn Presses White House on Afghan Vetting After D.C. Attack

U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, joined Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) and other Committee members to demand a full review of the former Biden-era vetting process that allowed Afghan nationals into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome.

The Senators's letter was sent to National Security Advisor Marco Rubio following a deadly terror attack in Washington, D.C., where two National Guard soldiers were ambushed. One of the individuals involved, as well as a Fort Worth resident recently charged with threatening to kill Americans, entered the country through the same parole system.

"It is past time for the United States to revisit the deficiencies of the Biden administration's vetting process for Afghan nationals and remedy the resulting egregious security threats," the senators wrote, urging immediate action to "prevent future attacks on American servicemen and citizens."

The letter cites multiple inspector general reports contradicting earlier claims that evacuees underwent "enhanced vetting." A 2022 Department of War report found that Operation Allies Refuge and Operation Allies Welcome failed to use critical data sources, including the Automated Biometric Identification System, before clearing evacuees.

After comparing evacuee information with the database, the National Ground Intelligence Center identified at least 50 individuals with "potentially significant security concerns," including fingerprints connected to improved explosive devices.

A separate Department of Homeland Security report concluded that roughly 31,000 evacuees were admitted before DHS established a task force to support and vet them. Meanwhile, the FBI has since identified potentially hundreds of individuals with possible terrorism links.

Cornyn and his colleagues say agencies have provided few answers about how many of these individuals are currently being monitored. Their letter asks the administration to implement overdue vetting recommendations, locate high-risk evacuees, and remove those who pose threats.

The senators argue that the U.S. cannot afford further gaps in a system that already allows dangerous individuals to enter undetected.