Veteran Serving In Congress Demands Vetting Of Afghan Nationals After Deadly National Guard Shooting

The consequences of the botched Afghanistan withdrawal during the Biden administration have made their way to the American homeland after the deadly National Guard shooting in Washington, D.C., according to many Republicans, including Senator Jim Banks (R-IN), who was deployed to Afghanistan while serving in the Navy.

Shortly following the suspect’s identification as an Afghan national, Banks immediately called for proper vetting of individuals who came into the country as refugees following the withdrawal from Afghanistan. In a Thursday interview with The Daily Wire on Capitol Hill, Banks elaborated on why he “predicted that this would happen.”

“If you flood the country with unvetted Afghan nationals, we knew that there would be a large population within that group who were aligned with terrorists, and now this is playing out and proving to be true,” Banks said.

“Go back and vet all of them,” the senator said, further adding that the role of Congress should be to support the president and “fund the effort to do that.” The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which passed in July, paved the way for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to hire thousands of agents, along with providing funding for immigration and border security measures.

“And all of them who weren’t properly vetted — every single one of them — should be vetted. And if they shouldn’t be in the United States, then they should be sent back to where they came from,” the Republican said.

“I served in Afghanistan, I served with translators and Afghan troops and others, and I can just tell you, not every single one of them should be allowed to come to the United States,” Banks continued.

“They should be vetted. Just because they did something in Afghanistan during the war that … aligned with America, doesn’t mean that they support American values, and no one should … be allowed to come to America that doesn’t love America,” he added.

Banks noted that the country’s immigration woes are arguably what won President Donald Trump a second term in 2024, adding that “he has a mandate to do what he’s doing.”

Millions of people were let into the U.S. through asylum and parole programs, as well as by illegally crossing the southern border, during the Biden administration. Roughly 14 million immigrants “unauthorized” to be in the U.S. were in the country as of 2023, according to the Pew Research Center. As for Afghans who entered after the withdrawal, they came in through Operation Allies Welcome and other programs.

The suspect in the deadly National Guard shooting last month in Washington, D.C., Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, reportedly worked alongside the CIA as a member of “Zero Unit” in Afghanistan. Rahmanullah has also dealt with mental health issues since coming to the United States.

The deadly shooting killed Sarah Beckstrom and seriously injured another National Guard member, Andrew Wolfe, who remains in serious condition, CNN reported.

Following the National Guard tragedy, Trump ordered the immigration processes for individuals from 19 “high-risk” nations halted to allow for “a thorough re-review process,” according to a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services policy memorandum from Dec. 2.

“In light of identified concerns and the threat to the American people, USCIS has determined that a comprehensive re-review, potential interview, and re-interview of all aliens from high-risk countries of concern who entered the United States on or after January 20, 2021 is necessary,” the memo stated. “Lastly, USCIS may, when appropriate, extend this review and re-interview process to aliens who entered the United States outside of this timeframe.”

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“We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden, and we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country,” Trump said in the immediate aftermath of the Nov. 26 shooting.

As for the suspect in the shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” “We believe he was radicalized since he has been here in this country. We do believe that it was through connections in his home community and state.”

The Indiana senator pointed out that even though the withdrawal from Afghanistan was in 2021, “there hasn’t been a successful effort for accountability in its aftermath.”

During the exit of American troops, 13 American soldiers died in an ISIS-K attack, and the Taliban regained control of the country.