Republicans give their take on travel ban

BREAKING RANKS

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Florida: “I object to the suspension of visas from the seven named countries because we could have accomplished our objective of keeping our homeland safe by immediate implementation of more thorough screening procedures.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky: “It’s going to be decided in the courts as to whether or not this has gone too far.”

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Ed Royce, California: “Pausing the intake of refugees from terror hot spots is the right call to keep America safe. I hope cases of individuals with visas travelling as this executive action went into effect — including some who served alongside U.S. troops — will be resolved quickly.”

Sen. Orrin Hatch, Utah: “President Trump has described his recent order as a means ‘(to) temporarily reduce investigative burdens on relevant agencies.’ In this spirit, I urge the new administration to move quickly to tailor its policy on visa issuance as narrowly as possible so that officials can protect our security needs while reducing unnecessary burdens on the vast majority of visaseekers that present a promise — not a threat — to our nation.”

Rep. Carlos Curbelo, Florida: “The United States is and has always been a generous nation when it comes to welcoming those who seek refuge and want to contribute. I expect that these executive orders are in fact temporary and that after the Administration strengthens the vetting process, we can continue our tradition of welcoming those who are persecuted in an orderly manner and without any kind of religious test.”

Sen. John McCain, Arizona: “The good news is it’s only got to do with a pause. The bad news is that obviously that this process and these conclusions were not vetted. There’s so much confusion out there.”

Sen. Rob Portman, Ohio: “... It is not a ban. However, I think it was not properly vetted. So, you have an extreme vetting proposal that didn’t get the vetting it should have had. And as the result, in the implementation, we’ve seen some problems.”

Rep. Lee Zeldin, New York: “I support the temporary entry restriction from certain nations until the administration, Congress and the American people know with confidence that any individual being granted admission does not pose a threat to our security . ... With all that being said, I will be closely monitoring the execution of this EO to make sure that any misapplication is corrected immediately.”

House Speaker Paul Ryan, Wisconsin: “President Trump is right to make sure we are doing everything possible to know exactly who is entering our country.”

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rep. Michael McCaul, Texas: “With the stroke of a pen, he is doing more to shut down terrorist pathways into this country than the last Administration did in eight years.”