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Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., plans to introduce a bill that would halt entry from a set of Muslim countries, an effort Ogles framed as a continuation of travel restrictions President Donald Trump implemented in 2017.
“Mass Islamic immigration, legal or illegal, has transformed America and brought destructive consequences,” Ogles said.
“America’s moral exemplar is a meek carpenter who rose from the dead, not a warmonger with 12 wives and countless slaves. My bill will preserve this truth.”
Ogles’ bill would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to prevent admission of aliens from a series of countries with predominantly Muslim populations and a handful of other U.S. adversaries as Republicans continue to express concerns about Islamic ideologies and possible ties to recent acts of violence.
The bill, dubbed the “Halt Immigration from Countries with Inadequate Verification Capabilities Act” (HICIVA), targets Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
The bill describes those countries as regions “where the government or prevailing conditions do not allow for reliable verification of the identities, backgrounds, or intentions” for travelers looking to enter the U.S. The ban would also apply to individuals who have lived in the listed countries in the five years before the date of their attempted entry.
It makes an exception for U.S. citizens.
Ogles’ plans to introduce his bill come on the heels of a deadly shooting in Austin, Texas, that left at least three dead and over a dozen others injured.
While investigators declined to definitively ascribe motives to the attack, police discovered the suspect, Ndiaga Diagne, 53, wearing a hoodie marked with the words “property of Allah” on the front. A search of his home also revealed an Iranian flag and photos of Islamic leaders.
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Diagne was shot and killed in a confrontation with law enforcement on Sunday.
The shooting came just one day after the United States struck the Islamic Republic of Iran alongside Israel, targeting the country’s military leadership, citing an imperative to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed on Saturday.
Investigators said they would take recent events into consideration as they evaluated the Austin shooting.
“We’re looking at the totality of this. We see these indicators, we’re thinking about events and what’s occurring in the country as well. The motives – all of those things, that’s what the investigation is about right now,” Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said in a press event.
While the investigation into the motives for the attack continues, Ogles believes Islam itself presents a threat to the United States as an idea.
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“In 2017, President Trump rightly called out the unassimilable nature of those from Islamic nations, and I want to make it statute. America is no place for a religion that endorses pedophilia, sex slavery, polygamy, abuse of women and the murder of Christians,” Ogles said, referring to an executive order from Trump’s first term.
That 2017 order made by Trump also sought to ban travel from the six countries highlighted by Ogles’ bill, and Iraq, for 90 days.
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The bill notes that the Supreme Court upheld Trump’s power to enact the restriction in the case of Trump v. Hawaii, stating in its decision that Trump had been motivated by security concerns and not religious animus.
According to Ogles’ office, Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., will also join the bill as an original sponsor.
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