Floor Remarks by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman and President Pro Tempore
“Oversight of Afghan Evacuee Vetting”
Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Last week, two members of the West Virginia National Guard were tragically shot here on duties in Washington, D.C.
They were attacked by an Afghan national brought here under the Biden administration.
Sadly, Specialist Beckstrom has passed away. Staff Sergeant Wolfe continues to fight for his life.
May God Bless both of them. [My] prayers are with them and their families.
Also last week, an Afghan evacuee was arrested for threatening to bomb a building in Texas.
The terrorists entered our country as part of a program called “Operation Allies Welcome” in the aftermath of the Biden administration’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Since 2021, I’ve warned the Biden administration, my congressional allies and colleagues and the American public about the failure to vet Afghan evacuees.
Unfortunately, the Biden administration was not honest with the American people about the program’s vetting vulnerabilities.
I asked then-Director Wray about the program’s national security [concerns].
I asked the same of Director Patel this year.
And this year, Director of National Intelligence Gabbard told my office an important data point: of the more than 100,000 Afghan evacuees – as of August 2022 – 1.6% had links to terrorism or other derogatory information.
So, when you take that 1.6%, that’s over 1,600 people who, at that time of Biden’s disastrous evacuation, posed a potential threat to our homeland and American people.
On July 8, 2025, I came to this Senate floor and urged the current FBI and Intelligence Community leadership to aggressively investigate evacuees.
In September of this year, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Noem told my office that, as of August 12, 2025, thousands of Operation Allies Welcome parolees were potential national security threats.
As we’ve tragically witnessed, the Biden administration’s failure to properly vet Afghan evacuees has serious consequences and probably consequences we haven’t seen, beyond the killing last week.
I think we should thank the Trump administration’s efforts, and I thank them for responding to my oversight requests and their efforts to fix the Biden administration’s failures.
This senator’s oversight work will continue.
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