Trump supporters say pausing to analyze immigration makes sense
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- As president, Donald Trump is the chief executive of the federal government and chief of state in foreign affairs. In those capacities, there's relative agreement on his capacity to direct an executive order that focus on travel, security, and immigration.
"A pause to analyze how we're analyzing things is prudent," Frank Perry, former NC Secretary of Public Safety, told ABC11. "It's incumbent upon any chief of state, it's incumbent upon any military intelligence and homeland security intelligence to prevent [an attack]. Even if the statistics are low, that does not relieve those entities from being fully diligent."
Perry, a former FBI agent who also served as a Homeland Security adviser to North Carolina, said he supports the premise of the president's executive order, even if there are legitimate questions surrounding how and when the order was implemented.
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Trump's order, signed last Friday, mandates a temporary ban of 90 days on those traveling to the United States from seven countries: Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen. Specifically, the order asks US officials in the State Department and Department of Homeland Security to take that time thoroughly review the processes by which travelers apply for a visitor, student or employment visa.
By the end of the 90 days, officials should provide a report on how those countries - and others - communicate and work with the United States on customs, immigration and border patrol.
"Someone involved in every major terrorist attack, including 9/11, involves North Carolina," Perry told ABC11. "Someone living here, someone traveling through here or someone studying here."
The seven countries in the order were also identified by the Obama administration in 2011 as nations requiring further scrutiny when it comes to travel. They are all mired in war or conflict, while Syria and Iran do not even have US embassies since the countries do not share diplomatic relations with America.
Still, some experts maintain that doesn't mean citizens of those countries aren't much of a threat to U.S. citizens.
"There are also women and children who want to flee those wars," said David Schanzer, Director of the Triangle Center On Terrorism and Homeland Security at Duke University. "It's been 15 years since 9/11 and what has been done in this Executive Order is far more extreme than anything that we did right after the incident happens."
Just last week, Schanzer published a report on Muslim-American violence in the U.S., and found "since 9/11 only 23 percent of Muslim-Americans involved with violent extremist plots had family backgrounds in these seven countries (Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen). There have been no fatalities in the United States caused by extremists with family backgrounds in these countries.
Click here to read the president's executive order in its entirety
