In an effort to defend its temporary travel ban on seven countries where extremism is rife, the Trump administration released a list Wednesday of 24 individuals suspected of terrorism who were admitted into the US in the past 8 years.
The list, obtained by Fox News, contains the names of 10 Somali nationals, six Iraqis, two Iranians, two from Sudan, two from Libya, one from Yemen and one from Syria. All of the suspects were arrested on terror charges, and the majority were convicted.
The report notes that the most recent case stems from June, when two Somali refugees were jailed for planning attacks in Syria in the name of ISIS. In another case from March 2016, a Yemeni national, who became a US citizen, was imprisoned for 22 years for attempting to support ISIS and plotting attacks on US military veterans.
A January 2016 case also saw a Palestinian national, born in Iraq, attempting to provide support to terror groups, and stating “I want to blow myself up … I am against America.” The man had entered the US as a refugee.
The list of suspects contradicts the assertion of Seattle U.S. District Judge James Robart who halted the executive order travel ban by opposing it last week.
When questioning a Justice Department lawyer concerning the number of arrests of foreign nationals since 9/11 from the countries on Trump’s ban list, Robart stated: “Let me tell you … The answer to that is none, as best I can tell.”
Speaking on the the court’s attempt to derail the travel ban Wednesday, President Trump said “I don’t ever want to call a court biased, so I won’t call it biased and we haven’t had a decision yet, but courts seem to be so political.”
“It would be so great for our justice system if they were able to read a statement and do what’s right and that’s to do with the security of our nation, which is so important.” he added.
Trump noted that the matter is a national security issue, and until it is resolved, the nation is under threat.
“I think it’s sad, I think it’s a sad day,” he said. “I think our security is at risk today and it will be at risk until such time as … we get what we are entitled to as citizens of this country.”
Meanwhile, the media, while labeling the travel restrictions a “Muslim ban,” have also compared White House chief strategist Steve Bannon to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS.
USA Today editor David Mastio was responsible for approving a piece titled “What Bannon shares with ISIL leader.”
Appearing on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show, Mastio doubled down on the piece, claiming that both Bannon and the ISIS leader believe there is an ongoing war between Islam and the West.
“We’re at war with a psychotic death cult, a fringe of the Islamic world,” Mastio said. “Bannon agrees with Baghdadi that it is a war between Islam and the West. We don’t need to give Baghdadi that propaganda victory.”
This constitutes another reason why the vast majority of Americans have a deep distrust of the media. A new poll by Emerson College has also found that the Trump administration is considered much more trustworthy than the mainstream media that is attacking it.
Among registered voters of all political affiliations, the administration is considered truthful by 49 percent, and untruthful by 48 percent.
The media, on the other hand, is considered untruthful by a majority of 53 percent, with only 39 percent believing it to be generally truthful.
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