DHS Can't Find 266 Illegals Who Pose 'National Security' Threat
The Department of Homeland Security, with some 240,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $60 billion, admits it can't find 266 foreign nationals who overstayed their visas and could pose a national security threat. Rebecca Gambler, director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues for the Government Accountability Office, testified on May 21 before the House Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security. She disclosed that in 2011, DHS identified 1,901 illegal overstays "who could pose national-security or public-safety concerns." As of March 2013, 14 percent, or 266, still can't be located. Of the 1,901 potentially dangerous overstays, 481 cases were given to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations division because they presented "potential public-safety threats," according to a GAO report cited by CNS News. Another 302 were in the process of changing their status to continue living in the United States, 711 had left the country, and nine had been arrested. "We have reported that most overstays are likely motivated by economic opportunities to stay in the United States beyond their authorized periods of admission," Gambler said. "However, overstays could pose homeland security concerns. For example, five of the 19 Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers were overstays," she said. Two U.S. senators — Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Ranking Republican Susan Collins of Maine — cited the GAO report and noted that "40 to 45 percent of the estimated total population of illegal aliens — 4 million to 5 million people — stayed past their visa expiration dates. But DHS' U.S. VISIT program — which is supposed to identify people who overstay their visas by comparing entry and exit information — cannot keep up with the number of potential overstays it identifies by matching entry and exit records." Sen. Lieberman said: "Despite numerous congressional and DHS efforts, we still lack an exit system that will effectively identify people who have overstayed their visas, and do so in real time." And Sen. Collins said: "According to the GAO report, ICE should do a better job identifying the estimated 4 million people in the United States who have stayed illegally after their permission to be here expired. "I understand that only 3 percent of ICE efforts are focused on these cases. That seems insufficient and shortsighted, as almost half of all unauthorized residents fall into this category." A column on the Accuracy in Media website observed: "Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano boasts of the success of her department in dealing with illegal immigration and related issues including border security. "However, past and recent GAO studies present a different picture." © Newsmax. All rights reserved. To subscribe or visit go to: http://www.newsmax.com |