Republican bill seeks to enforce social media vetting of visa applicants
A rookie Republican representative from Indiana has introduced a new border bill in Congress that would require the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to review the social media activity of all people applying for visas to enter the country.
The rule — which would apply to tourists, temporary workers, or anyone else who needs to apply for a visa to enter the U.S. — comes at a time when concerns about the discretionary power of the U.S. government at the border are plenty.
Jim Banks, the congressman behind the proposed legislation, spoke with As it Happens guest host Helen Mann from Fort Wayne, Ind.
Here is some of their conversation.
Helen Mann: Representative Banks, why do you feel a bill like yours is necessary at this point in time?
Jim Banks: Well, the legislation that I introduced last week is really a common sense approach to vetting those who seek a visa to come to the United States by adding a layer to the background check that would require those performing the background check to check into the publicly available social media content of visa applicants. This is something that officials with the Department of Homeland Security tell me, in most cases, they already do. They admit they lack the resources to thoroughly vet social media content. But it's a simple, common sense approach.
My legislation is a common sense approach. I'm hard-pressed to find a reason why [it] wouldn't be a good idea to look into publicly available social media content when performing a background check before awarding a visa.- Indiana Congressman Jim Banks
HM: So if Homeland Security is already doing this, what would your bill add?
JB: My legislation would codify and require those who are performing the background checks to vet social media content — and provide additional funding to Homeland Security [so] that they can more thoroughly go through that vetting process.
HM: And this is for all kinds of visas?
JB: This would be for all visas.
HM: So what would the parameters be, in terms of the discretion that Homeland Security might have?
JB: My legislation wouldn't have anything to do with changing the discretion that the Department of Homeland Security already has. It would merely require that they vet social media content along with the basic background check that they already perform. One statistic that I recently read is that last year a million applications for a visa were submitted, and only 2,200 of them were denied due to concern that that applicant had some affiliation with a terrorist group, or extremist tendencies. 8,600 of those visa applications were refused. [There were, in fact, two million applications submitted, according to the New York Times.]
HM: You seem to be suggesting that some of the people who got in might pose a danger. Do you have any evidence of that?
We have several incidents. You're a journalist. You can find those examples.- Congressman Jim Banks
JB: I think in the United States of America today we have much evidence to believe that terrorists have entered the country through legal means, by exploiting loopholes in the current process.
HM: What evidence?
JB: You can read and find evidence anywhere you look. We have several incidents. You're a journalist. You can find those examples.
HM: But I have listeners who want to hear it from you. This is your legislation, so I want to know what you're trying to get at.
JB: My legislation is a common sense approach. I'm hard pressed to find a reason why [it] wouldn't be a good idea to look into publicly available social media content when performing a background check before awarding a visa.
HM: What specifically would be on there that would deem someone a threat to the United States?
JB: That would be at the discretion of the Department of Homeland Security.
This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. For more on this story, listen to our full interview with Congressman Jim Banks.