Presidential hopeful and senator from Kentucky, Rand Paul, will present a bill to the floor of the Senate. Paul did not specify when the bill would be presented but assured Americans it will be soon. Paul told reporters Monday, “The best way to defend the country from attackers that don’t really have an army, but come here as individuals, is to prevent their access into this country,” further adding, “It is about time, and I think Paris should wake us up to the fact that we can’t just let anyone come to this country.”
The bill would place an immediate halt upon the granting of all visas for refugees, specifically those of Syrian origin. The bill would in total, halt visas from being distributed to immigrants of approximately 30 countries, while imposing 30 day waiting periods on countries that already have visa agreements with the United States. These waiting periods would be applicable to all visa seekers, including students and researchers.
Should the bill pass the Senate, which would be unlikely due to the democrat’s ability to filibuster without the fear of a cloture call, it would easily be approved by the House of Representatives. Of course, the bill would face almost certain veto from President Obama and die in an override vote.
Rather, Paul is using his position as a sitting Senator to make political maneuvers other candidates cannot. This bill, is likely meant to draw attention to the candidate in order to rebuild his lackluster polling figures. Still, the bill is desperately needed to add more pressure on the Obama administration and force the administration to take an even more unpopular stance on refugee immigration or cave to republican demands.
The Obama Administration is undeterred by the bill and still plans on admitting at least 12,000 refugees into the United States. Despite the centralized disapproval for the President’s plan, Paul will likely face heavy pushback from fellow republicans such as Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush, who want to ensure the safe harboring of Christian refugees who are at the most danger.
Paul still plans to push ahead with his bill, as he stated, “In order to be safe, in order to be secure, we cant just say, ‘Hey we’ve got an open door and we’re going to take people form the Middle East.’”
