Zeldin: We Shouldn’t Lump in Vetted Afghan Allies with People Who Weren’t Vetted

On Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “America Reports,” Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) stated that there are real concerns about improper vetting of people brought out of Afghanistan, but we shouldn’t let those who helped the United States “be hung out to dry” and those who did help American forces and “have been very thoroughly vetted should be put through, they shouldn’t be lumped together with the individuals who were just thrown on a plane and we don’t have the proper documentation and questioning.”

Zeldin stated, “I think that we have an opportunity here to get on the same page before this session is over at the end of next week, you’re going to have both houses in Washington, D.C. next week, so let’s get this over the finish line, understanding that you have these individuals who decide[d], at great sacrifice to themselves and their family, to help us, and in many respects, they’re fighting alongside us, they’re risking their own lives and there’s a breach of trust if we aren’t looking out for them after the fact. … And to Sen. Grassley’s (R-IA) point, we should be concerned about vetting, absolutely. We can’t let these people be hung out to dry. At the very least, we need to take care of them short-term, let’s try and get it fixed by next week.”

He added, “Sen. Grassley absolutely has a point. And what you hear with the counterpoint that, you end up identifying individuals who have been thoroughly vetted, yes, absolutely, but in the chaos of the withdrawal, were all sorts of other people who ended up getting put on these planes and brought here. So, Sen. Grassley having a concern about vetting is something that, whether you’re in the administration or in Congress, Republican, Democrat, we should all be concerned about. We need to figure out how to get this over the finish line, where those individuals who have been very thoroughly vetted should be put through, they shouldn’t be lumped together with the individuals who were just thrown on a plane and we don’t have the proper documentation and questioning.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett