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For Immediate Release
Contact: Dan Gordon, 617-651-0841
Jan. 15, 2021
National Security Experts: Rescind the Travel Ban
A recording of today’s call is available here.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A rescission of President Trump’s travel ban would bolster national security, experts said on a press call this morning.
The message echoes a paper published today, the latest in a series titled "Insider Perspectives: National Security and Immigration." It follows a paper posted last month focused on refugee resettlement as a boon to national security.
The following are quotes from speakers on today’s call:
Elizabeth Neumann, senior advisor to the National Immigration Forum on national security and former Assistant Secretary of Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention at the Department of Homeland Security under the Trump administration:
"There is no need for a blanket ban on people of a certain nationality. So, I’m very grateful that President-elect Biden has indicated he’s going to rescind both the travel and refugee bans. It’s the right call for our national security. These bans damaged our nation’s reputation. They were an unnecessary distraction from the actual security enhancements that were needed."
Ryan Crocker, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait and Lebanon:
"Whatever window dressing the administration sought to put on the travel ban, it’s seen around the world as what it is: an anti-Muslim directive. And that has damaged us greatly. … Hopefully a week from now, we can see a different playing field out there, in the Middle East and elsewhere, and one in which our security is enhanced, not degraded."
Ali Noorani, President and CEO of the National Immigration Forum:
"The travel ban and severe limits on refugee resettlement not only have sent the wrong message but have made us less safe. We look forward to policies that bolster our security by focusing on actual security threats at home and abroad."
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