Press Releases

Washington, D.C. -- Today, Representative Rosendale released the following statement following the arrest of an Afghan parolee for the rape of an 18-year-old girl in Missoula:

The individual arrested for rape did not go through the 14-step, 18-24 month vetting process required to obtain a visa, and was instead paroled into to the country by President Biden’s Department of Homeland Security without proper screening.

At the initial hearing, the attorney for the Afghan parolee who was arrested claimed that cultural and language barriers may have played a role in the rape.

“For months I have warned of the consequences of admitting and resettling unvetted Afghan nationals throughout our country. These unvetted Afghans do not share our culture and our values, and as this horrific incident shows they represent a serious risk to our communities,” said Representative Rosendale. “We cannot allow this administration to continue to jeopardize the safety of our communities and the security of our nation in the name of empathy. I urge the Biden Administration to immediately halt the resettlement of Afghan nationals across our nation and begin to remove Afghan evacuees that have been resettled from the United States.”

Background:

On October 12, Rep. Rosendale introduced H.R. 5572, the SECURE America Act, which would ensure thorough refugee vetting prior to admission, end the authority of the Secretary of Homeland Security to parole aliens into the country, and reclaim and expand the authority of Governors and Congress over the process of admission and resettlement of refugees.

On September 16, Rep. Rosendale released a statement, opposing the resettlement of 75 Afghan nationals in Montana, all of which were admitted through Humanitarian Parole.

On August 16, Rep. Rosendale released a statement, warning that the Biden Administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan was no excuse to flood the United States with Afghan evacuees.