Comer, Green, & Jordan Threaten to Subpoena DHS for Information on Aliens with Terrorist Ties Crossing the Border

WASHINGTON – House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.), House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.), and House Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) are renewing their request for information from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on how the Department is tackling heightened national security risks posed by a skyrocketing number of aliens with terrorist ties illegally crossing the United States’ Southwest border. In the letter to DHS Secretary Mayorkas, the Chairmen renewed their request for documents and information and threaten the compulsory process if DHS continues to stonewall oversight of the crisis along the Southwest border.

“As we explained in our initial letter, since President Biden began reversing policies deterring illegal border crossings, the United States has faced historic levels of illegal immigration. The number of individuals with derogatory information in terrorist screening databases illegally crossing the southwest border has also skyrocketed during the Biden Administration,” said the Chairmen. “Instead of turning over the requested information, [t]he Department ignored these inquiries or responded with vague, unhelpful excuses—citing, among other things, ‘interagency equities’ and the ‘sensitive’ nature of the information. Finally, on September 11, nearly four months after our request, the Department responded with a two-page letter. Instead of producing the requested documents and information, the Department directed the Committees to publicly available information and offered a classified briefing, ‘based on past precedent’ to ‘address these questions.’”

The number of individuals with derogatory information in terrorist screening databases illegally crossing the southwest border has skyrocketed during the Biden Administration. Just since the initial May 19 letter, which referenced 96 individuals this fiscal year who had crossed with terrorist ties, Border Patrol has now encountered at least 56 more aliens with derogatory information in the terrorist screening databases.

“If the Department continues to fail to produce the requested documents by October 13, 2023, we will consider other measures, including use of the compulsory process, to gain compliance and obtain this material,” continued the Chairmen.

Read the letter to DHS Secretary Mayorkas here.