The arrest of Hassan also raises the question of whether Greece, as a key refugee transit country, is properly vetting higher risk migrants for potential ties to ISIS before granting refugee status and conferring its benefits. The United States has reportedly been assisting Greece, to some extent, in vetting incoming migrants and refugees to determine whether any are terrorists. By Todd … [Read more...] about ISIS Commander Arrested in Hungary Held Refugee Passport Enabling Unrestricted Air Travel
Securing U.S. Borders
Report from Hungary’s Fenced Borderlands
Not lost on the Hungarians, at least, are the parallels to the current mass illegal migration from Central America over America's southern border, projected to exceed one million in 2019, and as President Donald Trump contemplates building barriers and closing the U.S.-Mexico border. Hungary's fence-with-policies model justifies consideration in an ideas-hungry United States. By Todd Bensman … [Read more...] about Report from Hungary’s Fenced Borderlands
Central American Countries Help Middle Easterners and Terrorist Suspects Reach U.S. Border
American, Panamanian, and Costa Rican law enforcement and intelligence officials are engaged in programs here to hunt, investigate, and deport terrorist suspects who are, in fact, discovered among the thousands of migrants from the Middle East, Horn of Africa, and South Asia funneling through this section of Latin America—as President Trump said and as I saw and heard on the ground. By Todd … [Read more...] about Central American Countries Help Middle Easterners and Terrorist Suspects Reach U.S. Border
Twitter series on mandatory catch-and-release stirs coverage and controversy but settled nothing
Daniel Horowitz of The Conservative Review was among several journalists who wrote about a series of my tweets during the first week of March 2019, which chocked up hundreds of thousands of impressions after the likes of Michelle Malkin and Anne Coulter, followers of my account, retweeted them. The tweets were based on secret verbal policy orders that a credible U.S. Citizen and Immigration … [Read more...] about Twitter series on mandatory catch-and-release stirs coverage and controversy but settled nothing
Yemenis Smuggled over Texas Border Wearing Hard-Hats and Reflective Vests
The latest on an eight-count alien-smuggling indictment charging that a Jordanian with dual Mexican citizenship illegally transported at least seven Yemenis over the southern border in 2017 — near the same Piedras Negras (Mexico)-Eagle Pass (Texas) border-crossing that members of the last Central American migrant caravan were hoping to reach before Mexico detained them. By Todd … [Read more...] about Yemenis Smuggled over Texas Border Wearing Hard-Hats and Reflective Vests
Can and Should Mexican Cartels be Designated as Terrorist Organizations?
By Todd Bensman as published at Center for Immigration Studies on February 26, 2019 Calling for Mexico's drug-trafficking cartels to be designated as foreign terrorist organizations has long earned easy gold stars for the GOP side of the ledger, with really no possible downside. After all, who is not repelled by organizations that behead victims, run houses of torture, co-opt … [Read more...] about Can and Should Mexican Cartels be Designated as Terrorist Organizations?
Two Senators Ask What Became of Obama-Era Program to Counter Terrorist Infiltration at Southern Border
By Todd Bensman as published by the Center for Immigration Studies on February 25, 2019 Last August, the Center for Immigration Studies exclusively published a three-page memorandum by former DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, addressed to 10 of his top agency chiefs. It ordered a secret full-scale enforcement program to suppress "special interest alien" migration from the Middle … [Read more...] about Two Senators Ask What Became of Obama-Era Program to Counter Terrorist Infiltration at Southern Border
Video: Panel Discussion at The National Press Club, Center for a Secure and Safe Society regarding migrant caravans and Latin America security
Full video is now available of the February 12 panel discussion on which I participated at The National Press Club, for the Center for a Secure and Free Society. Topic: Migrant Caravans and security in Latin America. I recommend watching the whole thing; my part begins at about Minute 37. But Guatemala's Minister of Intelligence was on hand and was very interesting as well. … [Read more...] about Video: Panel Discussion at The National Press Club, Center for a Secure and Safe Society regarding migrant caravans and Latin America security
Inside Mexico’s Migrant Caravan Shelter near the Texas Rio Grande Border
During a mid-February visit to the Texas-Mexico border, Bensman gained exclusive, rare access to the improvised migrant detention camp in Piedras Negras and also toured the American law enforcement defense arrayed on the other side against a potential mass entry into Texas. In the end, he found, it is the migrants who will get everything they wanted. Originally published by the Center for … [Read more...] about Inside Mexico’s Migrant Caravan Shelter near the Texas Rio Grande Border
A Terror Case the Travel Ban Would Have Prevented
Opponents have decried the policy as a racist and religiously discriminatory "Muslim ban." But this defies the fact that Muslim-majority countries such as Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf States, and many other Muslim-majority countries are not designated. Why would this be? Because these Muslim-majority countries keep criminal and intelligence records and share them with America. As … [Read more...] about A Terror Case the Travel Ban Would Have Prevented