Members of Colorado’s congressional delegation continue to look overseas to stop terrorists attacks, as groups in Colorado say the spotlight should be placed here in America after last week’s shooting spree at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood.
Perhaps the most vocal member of the delegation has been U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, who called for halting a Syrian refugee program after the Paris terrorist attacks last month, in which at least 130 people died.
President Barack Obama announced in September that 10,000 Syrians would be allowed entry next year, raising concerns after Paris, as at least one of the terrorist suspects entered Europe as a Syrian refugee, according to authorities.
Tipton has been especially hard on Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, calling on him to lead efforts in the Senate to suspend admission of refugees from Syria into the United States until more stringent vetting processes are in place.
“It is too important to remain silent on – Coloradans deserve leaders who will put their security first,” Tipton said of the House effort.
Meanwhile, Bennet this week introduced legislation in the Senate that would strengthen the security of the nation’s visa waiver program to help prevent terrorists from entering.
The legislation would require individuals who have traveled to Syria or Iraq in the past five years to acquire a traditional tourist visa instead of traveling without a visa under the waiver program. Travelers using the program would have to submit fingerprints and a photograph. Electronic passports would be required.
“Our visa waiver program contains vulnerabilities that terrorists and our enemies could exploit to enter this country,” Bennet said in a statement.
Of the House legislation supported by Tipton, Bennet added: “The House-passed refugee bill is inadequate to solve the problem.”
But groups in Colorado and across the nation say Congress should also be looking at domestic terrorism.
The calls have grown after last Friday’s Planned Parenthood shootings, in which a police officer and two civilians were killed at a clinic in Colorado Springs. A clear motive has yet to be released by authorities, but reports suggest that the suspect referred to “baby parts” upon surrendering. Reproductive-rights advocates believe the incident should be treated as domestic terrorism against women.
Conservative-led verbal attacks on Planned Parenthood have grown louder in recent months after secretly recorded videos were released by an anti-abortion group, which the group believes shows Planned Parenthood discussing trafficking fetal body parts for profit.
“History has demonstrated that refugees fleeing violence and oppression in other nations are not a threat to the United States,” said Amy Runyon-Harms, executive director of ProgressNow Colorado. “Reasonable measures to ensure security while meeting humanitarian obligations are acceptable.
“But as we tragically learned last week in Colorado Springs, terrorism can be entirely homegrown,” she said. “In both cases, what is needed now is clear-headed responsibility and compassion – not fear and falsehoods.”
In a statement emailed to The Durango Herald, Tipton countered: “The tragedy in Colorado Springs is an entirely separate issue from justified concerns about ISIS fighters infiltrating the U.S. through the Syrian refugee program because refugees can’t be stringently verified. Working on one issue does not detract from focusing on another – it’s possible to walk and chew gum at the same time.”
pmarcus@durangoherald.com
