WASHINGTON, DC – Today, after the Trump Administration issued a revised executive order banning immigration from several majority Muslim nations, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), the Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement:

“President Trump’s first attempt at a travel ban was a half-baked mess that did more harm than good.  This new attempt to repackage it is still irrational, discriminatory, and counterproductive.  It doesn’t make us safer but it does undermine American values and compromises our ability to fight terrorism.

“Homeland Security assessments show this doesn’t make us safer.

“The Trump Administration should focus on security measures that actually help protect our nation.

“We must effectively vet and screen everyone who comes to the United States, regardless of their religion or country of origin.  The President should work with Congress toward a more rational policy that will actually make us safer without undermining our principles.”

Earlier this year, Reed joined U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, in introducing a bill to rescind President Trump’s original discriminatory executive order barring immigrants from certain Muslim-majority countries and suspending the U.S. refugee program.