U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) issued the following statement after the House of Representatives passed the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act with a bipartisan vote of 289-137:

“Our great nation has a proud tradition of welcoming refugees into our country. However, we must place the highest priority on the security of the American people. With the potential of 10,000 Syrian refugees coming into the country, we must do more to ensure our refugee process is not exploited by terrorists. Today’s legislation, which I cosponsored, puts in place the most robust national security vetting process in history for any refugee population. This legislation also halts the admission of refugees from Syria until the government can provide the American people with certainty that those coming into our country do not seek to do us harm.”

The American SAFE Act would place a moratorium on the admission of Syrian refugees until following conditions are met: the FBI Director certifies the background investigation of each refugee; the Secretary of Homeland Security, FBI Director, and the Director of National Intelligence must certify to Congress that each refugee is not a security threat to the United States. It would require the DHS Inspector General to independently assess the refugee approvals to ensure high-risk individuals do not get through and it would make sure the FBI has a direct role in validating that the background checks are thorough enough to keep potentially dangerous individuals out of the country.