[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 2 (Tuesday, January 5, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H6]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     REVOKE PASSPORTS OF MEMBERS OF FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, ISIS fighters hail from nations all 
over the world, including the United States. Americans who go to fight 
the jihadists overseas are able to freely travel back to the United 
States with their U.S. passports.
  These homegrown jihadists are not coming back home to open up coffee 
shops. They are coming home to harm Americans. We have to stop them by 
keeping them from coming back at all. That is why the United States 
House passed the Foreign Terrorist Organization Passport Revocation 
Act, which I introduced.
  The legislation is simple: revoke or deny passports of Benedict 
Arnold Americans who have assisted designated foreign terrorist 
organizations. Not only will the bill help law enforcement locate these 
individuals, it will prevent them from entering the United States at 
all.
  While my bill languishes down the hall in the Senate, Congress did 
pass a law allowing for the revocation of passports for Americans who 
are delinquent on their taxes. Mr. Speaker, what is a bigger threat to 
America and our national security? Tax offenders or terrorists?
  Congress must get its priorities straight. It is time for the Senate 
to pass the House bill and revoke passports of members of foreign 
terrorist organizations who may or may not be tax cheats.
  And that is just the way it is.

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