[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1293]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             EXECUTIVE WAIVES NEW VISA WAIVER RESTRICTIONS

  (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. Madam Speaker, the Constitution is clear: Congress 
shall make the law, the judiciary interprets the law, and the executive 
enforces the law.
  The President, however, seems to think he can make and interpret the 
law.
  Last year, Congress passed the Visa Waiver Improvement and Terrorist 
Travel Prevention Act. It requires foreign nationals from certain 
countries to obtain a visa before they come to the United States. Now 
the administration has decided to waive this new requirement. The 
President plans to allow dual citizens and people who have traveled to 
places like Syria, the Sudan, Iraq, and Iran to waltz back into the 
United States without a visa.
  The Department of Homeland Security estimates that 5,000 Westerners 
have made the journey to Iraq and Syria to fight with militant groups 
like ISIS. Allowing this new executive edict will only weaken U.S. 
national security.
  The Founders implemented the separation of powers to protect the 
people from an all-powerful--omnipotent--government. The 
administration's executive overreach violates the Constitution and puts 
Americans and our security at risk.
  And that is just the way it is.

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