Former acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf argued on Wednesday that President Biden’s intention to lift Donald Trump’s travel bans to Muslim-majority countries “will make the American people less secure.”
Speaking in “America Reports” shortly after Biden took office on Wednesday, Wolf called the decision to reverse travel bans “very disappointing”.
On Wednesday, Biden will issue a series of executive orders, including the signing of an order ending what he describes as a “Muslim ban” – which refers to travel bans imposed on predominantly Muslim and African countries due to security concerns national.
“I expected your team to come and really take a look at what the department did,” said Wolf, noting that “there was never any Muslim ban” as the travel restrictions “were not based on religion.”
“Instead, what the department has done over four years has been to define very specific criteria that these countries need to meet,” he said. “We are very upfront with them about how to address this, and in the process, we are getting more information today … known and suspected terrorist travel patterns today because of this process than ever before.”
“And going in and reversing that without a careful process is very worrying,” continued Wolf.
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Biden’s transition team said the order would restart visa processing and “would quickly develop a proposal to restore justice and remedy the damage caused by the prohibitions, especially for individuals arrested in the exemption process and those who had their visas of denied immigrants. “
Separately, Biden is ending the construction of the wall on the southern border – one of Trump’s signature policies, which has seen 450 miles of wall built since 2017. Biden has promised to stop building the wall, although Trump officials have said that another 350 miles is funded.
Wolf noted on Wednesday that the border wall is what operators on the ground need for border security.
“What President Trump did, what the department did and the leadership even before me was listening to our operators on the ground,” said Wolf. “So my concern is, again, you are fulfilling a campaign promise, which I understand from politics, but you are making the country less secure.”
Wolf pointed to Biden’s comments during the campaign, when he said he would like to add more technology to the border, saying he was welcome, but not enough.
“At the end of the day they [Border Patrol Agents] they need that impediment and denial that an effective border wall system gives them, “emphasized Wolf, adding that he expects the Biden government to reconsider its decision.
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The order directs an “immediate pause” on projects to allow what Biden’s team calls a “rigorous review” of the legality of funding for the wall and how to redirect funds that have been blocked by the Trump administration.
Adam Shaw of Fox News contributed to this report.