Kelly Tshibaka: Afghan refugees must be vetted before they are admitted to U.S.

By
GUEST CONTRIBUTOR
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By KELLY TSHIBAKA

While the United States’ involvement in Afghanistan needed to end at some point, President Biden’s reckless withdrawal plan was an epic failure of leadership for which he must be held to account. The service members we have lost, and the countless American civilians he has abandoned to an uncertain fate, deserve nothing less. 

Biden has argued that we could not continue to incur the enormous expense of a long-term military engagement in Afghanistan. In response, he pursued a plan that was executed at an incalculable cost – namely the lives of thirteen service members killed by a suicide bomber, innocent American civilians abandoned behind enemy lines, the betrayal of our Afghan allies, a global questioning of American might and resolve, the emboldening of our terrorist adversaries, and the surrender of billions of dollars in military equipment and technology to the Taliban.   

The repercussions of Biden’s blunders have reverberated throughout the world and may destabilize the existing global order in ways even our most able political prognosticators cannot anticipate. Yet, Biden remains resolute in his defense of the indefensible, attributing these losses to the unfortunate consequences of an unavoidably chaotic withdrawal.

In the meantime, our nation grieves; our veterans’ crisis hotline experienced an exponential increase in calls this August compared to the same period last year, which the Department of Veterans Affairs attributes in part to Biden’s bungling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.   

Interestingly, Sen. Lisa Murkowski has expressed surprise and dismay at Biden’s calamitous withdrawal, even though she initially believed that “this Administration had a viable plan in place.”  

We are not surprised by Murkowski or her hindsight-criticism of the Biden Administration. She consistently has enabled Biden’s radical policies, including those that target Alaska. Nor are we surprised by Biden. We hoped for better, but he has proven, yet again, that he is the person we have always known him to be – the same person who helped lead President Obama’s hasty withdrawal from Iraq in 2011, which led to the rise of ISIS.  

While Biden cannot undo the results of his appallingly poor judgment, he still can prevent further damage and danger to our homeland by properly vetting all Afghans who are seeking to resettle in America under our refugee program. The United States has always been a welcoming nation. We should open our arms to Afghans seeking freedom and protection from persecution, beginning with those who risked their lives to support our troops. But we also should have a clear understanding of whom we are admitting and screen out any who may present a risk to our security. 

I spent part of my career serving in the national security community. I am aware of the methods jihadists employ to gain entry to our country, as well as the methods we use to identify them. Verifying the background of potential refugees is challenging even under the most ideal conditions; conducting a thorough and responsible vetting process for thousands of people rapidly fleeing a collapsed country is almost impossible.

Nevertheless, Biden must take every remaining precaution available to prevent Islamic extremists from gaining entry to our country. He simply cannot afford to compound one entirely avoidable calamity with another, nor can the American people afford to suffer the consequences of yet another Biden Bungle.  

Thus far, President Biden has offered only a vague commitment that refugees will be “screened,” but that provides no assurance.  Remember it was Joe Biden who laid out the “welcome mat” at our southern border with Mexico, effectively inviting hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants to enter our country with virtually no scrutiny and intentionally reversing many of the successful border protection policies President Trump instituted.

President Biden must explain precisely how his Administration will verify that Afghan refugees pose no security danger to the United States; otherwise, we risk importing terrorism. 

At this point, there is little Biden can do to repair what he broke in Afghanistan, including his complete dismantling of the advancement of women’s rights that Afghan women and girls had only just begun to experience. But he still can prevent terrorists from exploiting our compassion by using our refugee program in order to move their battlefield to our backyards. We can only hope. 

Kelly Tshibaka is a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Alaska. 

35 COMMENTS

  1. I’m sure it’s already too late, Afghan Refugees? We don’t know where they are…. We released them somewhere…. We gave them a case number and they have to go to court “someday”…

  2. Well stated, but the fact remains the worst of the worst have probably strolled into our country across the southern border that doesn’t exist anymore.

  3. The taliban were controlling who was entering the airport.
    I’m sure they let plenty of their “friends” through.
    13th century barbarians coming to a town near you.

  4. Before I vote for you I would like to hear you publicly give us your opinion of our “marine senator “ Dan Sullivan!
    Are you willing to?

  6. Biden has no clue what he has done and certainly no plan to move forward….Loyd Austin is also completely lost and the State department is filled with empty heads and seem to know nothing beyond it is Labor day weekend…

    • You are mistaken Charlie. It may appear that he and others in his administration haven’t a clue, but things like this don’t happen unless this is the effect they wanted. It may seem absurd but there is an intentional effort, by those in our government, to destroy everything that has made our country great. Straight out of Biden’s mouth, “there’s nothing special about America”. You may ask yourself why would they destroy their own country? Because the effects of what they are doing will never be felt by the rich and powerful. No matter what happens to the common people, they care not, it is more than evident by the way they are leading the country. And all we continue to do is fight amongst ourselves with no focus on the truth and no meaningful way of holding them accountable. If people would open their eyes and see where our country is headed, but instead they refuse to believe that the captain is intentionally sinking the ship with us in it, while he and his minions have the only life boat.

  8. In knowing what has and is happening in Afghanistan I suggest:
    Read Article 104 of the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice)
    As the Commander in Chief of the Military, Biden is subject to the UCMJ.
    This is just one of the many sections in the UCMJ about aid and abetting the enemy.

    “Elements:
    That at a specific time and place, the accused gave aid to specific person(s).
    That the person receiving the aid was the enemy.
    That the accused aided this enemy by providing ammunition/ arms/ supplies/ cash.
    Note: a) The accused is guilty of violating this article even if the enemy had no need for the ammunition/ arms/ supplies/ cash furnished by him.
    b) The fact that the accused gained or did not gain any monetary or other benefit from furnishing the ammunition/ arms/ supplies/ cash does not make a difference to his guilt.
    b) Attempt to provide ammunition or arms

    Maximum Punishment: The accused faces maximum punishment of death or other lawful punishment as deemed appropriate through a court martial process for violating Article 104. For more information refer to the Manual for Courts Martial”.

    So why hasn’t Congress or the Military addressed this??

  9. A much better written statement to Alaska than U.S. Sen. Murkowski’s typical formalized statement that sounds like it is written more by an aid than the Senator herself. This ones sentences and paragraphs would bring rest and assurance for concerned and frightened countrymen by a leader who has political hindsight, sensitivity, and biblical wisdom.

  10. Surprisingly, our local democrat -socialist leaders are silent about this threat agianst America on social media and their public conversations. I think there silence, or indifference on this security matter, can hurt their chances being re-elected or elected.

    I know Democrat supporters see too many flaws about America that they think it needs to be different. If your country is destroyed than you have no home and no place for your businesses.
    It’s like to get a more restful sleep you don’t throw the crib outside with the baby. This will only make things worse for yourself. you attend to the needs of the baby that brings assurance, security, and comfort to the baby.

    Now! Can these leaders finish the southern wall and close the border to start restoring Americans confidence.

  13. To our Kelly, nothing suggests Afghan refugees are “vetted” before they’re admitted to the U.S.
    .
    State Department employees who apparently to have no clue about how many Americans they abandoned in Afghanistan, how many Americans they turned away from Kabul Airport can hardly be expected to “vet” potential terrorists, criminals, or Taliban operatives on their way to the land of the Big PX.
    .
    Taliban operatives? Seems reasonable to ask, Kelly, why refugee flights weren’t shot down by a motivated and capable Taliban. Could it be the flights were loaded in part with Taliban operatives, “vetted” by the best counterfeit documents and legends Taliban dope money can buy, tasked with carrying the war to America in some grand gesture coincident with 9/11 memorials?
    .
    Can’t happen? We know illegal aliens from the Middle East freely cross what was America’s southern border, ICE captures a few, the rest pour into America unvetted, and nobody in the Biden Administration cares. These fighting-age males show up in America, not anywhere else, to do what, exactly?
    .
    In practice we see that vetting seems most effective against U.S. citizens trying to return to the U.S., so how it’s supposed to work against perfectly-credentialed Taliban operatives or newly arrived potentially belligerent illiterates who can’t or won’t speak a word of English is unclear.
    .
    What’s the end game, Kelly? Clearly it’s not vetting. Maybe Americans should be thinking out of the box… for example, doing a deal with the Mexicans to export Afghan colonists into northern Mexico with a view to reducing, maybe even neutralizing, drug cartel influence.
    .
    Your thoughts, Kelly?

  14. “Tell me it isn’t so”! It’s a horrifying reality and I wish this wasn’t happening but everyone needs to wake up an realize that this Afghanistan Catastrophe was in fact an Orchestrated Event, by the Globalists, as part of Their Master Plan & Controlled Demolition of The USA! One of the stated objectives of “The Great Reset” as espoused by Klaus Schwab, spokesman for the World Economic Forum is that they envision a grand “New World Order”, where the United States is no longer a world power or leader of the free world. The Globalists know that America’s Economy, Military, and Constitution, must all be Obliterated, and The American People, must be Silenced, and Disarmed, before they can fulfill their Master Plan for The Total Control of All Humanity!

  15. The possible jihadists you mention trying to infiltrate the country are benign compared to the terrorists with American citizenship already engaged in a full scale assault on our country’s national security and future economic prosperity and self-sufficiency. Who? CCP backed and funded organizations like Trout Unlimited run by terrorists like Joel and their NRDC buddies using the guise of environmentalism to cripple the Pebble Mine. While China stifles our safe project in our country, they look to partner with the Taliban to exploit the $1 trillion in rare earth minerals Afghanistan has in their soil. Therein lies your point of difference with Murkowski and Sullivan to exploit IMO. Implying they are lenient on vetting political refugees from Afghanistan doesn’t have the gold, copper and molybdenum that lies in the hills … make that the treeless open tundra 100 miles away from Bristol Bay. Focus on those terrorists with American Citizenship. Rep Young is a great role model for how to not be afraid to stand for what is right, in spite of what is being portrayed (wrongly BTW) as politically popular.

  16. Quite sure a translator who was at the front lines and their families, or Afghans whose family members were killed by Taliban are adequately vetted. We need to keep aliens out who come to Alaska and lie about their residency

  17. Excellent article. Thanks Kelly S. BTW, one of my relatives is stationed at one of the Afghan refugee receiving bases. They are to get 5,000 refugees who will not be restricted to their area. Sounds troubling re on an Air Force Base. Contractor was awarded a huge $82 Million contract to house/support the refugees.

  18. Ms. Candidate has never responded to any question posed on this site and uses it exclusively to post a constant stream of self promoting advertisements, the content of which she gleans from clever posters on this site.

    Don’t believe? Look to see what people have been talking about here and then watch for the next stream of pap from this $100k couch mover. You’re doing little more than feeding a troll.

  19. Here’s Kelly’s experience straight from her own resume:
    .
    OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE Oct. 2005–Jul. 2013 Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Washington, DC 20511
    Special Advisor, Civil Liberties and Privacy Office Sept. 2011–Jul. 2013 • Developed guidance for the Intelligence Community (IC) on addressing civil liberties and privacy issues in collaborative electronic environments and in the use of social media information.
    Led IC-wide campaigns and initiatives (website strategy, training, awareness events, and public relations efforts) to increase awareness of the IC’s civil liberties and privacy protections, including the first National Counterterrorism Center Symposium—a public outreach event to leaders of the Muslim community.
    Advisor to the Inspector General, Office of the Inspector General Oct. 2005–Sept. 2011
    • Co-led the creation and establishment of the OIG. Principal advisor to the IG on legal, legislative, policy, personnel, budget, planning, and facilities matters. Produced, oversaw, or finalized more than 65 reports.
    • Advocated successfully for legislation that established the IC Inspector General in statute.
    • Managed office-wide staff and operations. Increased the staff of the OIG by more than 50%, and implemented
    a strategic plan and work plan that increased production of reports by more than 100% over 2 years.
    .
    That’s it…a bureaucrat NOT some kind of intelligence expert on the Middle East or anywhere else.
    Now she’s telling us “I spent part of my career serving in the national security community. I am aware of the methods jihadists employ to gain entry to our country, as well as the methods we use to identify them.”
    .
    Kelly’s resume doesn’t reflect any experience in the methods that jihadists employ or how to identify them unless she was critical to making sure their civil liberties weren’t violated.
    Her resume does show how she worked to make sure that Muslim inmates incarcerated within the United States got their full measure of civil rights as she “Co-led a 10-person team to investigate abuse of Muslim inmates incarcerated in New York post-9/11.”
    .
    Kelly has such a thin background that she’s constantly forced to inflate her experience and achievements to try and impress us.
    Go read her full resume (it’s on a State of Alaska website) and you’ll be hugely unimpressed.
    She’s a pretender with about zero to offer.

    • This is an excellent evaluation of her fraud. Why is everyone so anxious to jump on the first candidate we are served up by the swamp? Yes, yes, we all hate Lisa – that’s why we voted her out in 2010. That doesn’t mean we should embrace a candidate with no proven history except in the swamp and a growing list of made-up stories about her experience.

  20. This cow has left the barn.

    You voted for this imbecile, America. You didn’t think there would be consequences?

  21. I gotta laugh. Why would there be vetting for Afghanis when there’s none for the Southern Hordes? In the words of Ted Nugent, “It’s a free for all, baby!”

  22. So about how many of these “vetted” refugees would you say the U.S. should take in, Kelly, and exactly how many of them would you like to plop down in Alaska?
    –
    And because Afghans are largely uneducated and and thus unemployable by American standards, how much would you say American taxpayers should be willing to cough up in challenging times to pay their way through life, Kelly?
    –
    As Rep. David Eastman made clear in his highly insightful piece here on MRAK yesterday, Afghan culture is utterly broken with rape and other crimes accepted by their people as the norm: https://mustreadalaska.com/rep-david-eastman-i-was-chief-of-police-of-the-american-military-base-in-downtown-kabul-this-is-what-i-saw
    –
    In view of Mr. Eastman’s observations, what would you expect to happen to the crime rates of every locale that Afghans were deposited in and how much would you say taxpayers should be willing to spend to try to keep a lid on it?
    –
    And when all is said and done, Kelly, just how many new government employees would you say should be hired at all levels to address the needs of all the Afghan refugees you’d like to bring in and the newly created needs of the impacted communities and states they’d take residence up in in your perfect world?
    –
    And not to be unkind but while we’re at it, how about shedding some light on how many and which refugees from other trouble spots on the globe you think we should reach out to and take in as well as how much you’d like to see taxpayers saddled with to make it happen as you’d like?
    –
    Hey, are you sure you’re really a conservative, Kelly? You can piece together some well deserved castigating words for Biden which you hope will play well here and wrap your pitch in an emotional appeal to pity but your ridiculous bleating for more bloated government and social disorder certainly suggests otherwise.
    –
    How much would you like Alaskans to spend to move you and your family again anyway?

    • Dear Aunt Sally, do you betray your friendly neighbors when they help you shovel your driveway by telling the city that they dumped the snow in the street? Our Afghan friends – the ones who helped us protect our own troops – is it right to betray them by giving a list of their names to our enemy who has already declared that our friends will be killed? We take care of our own, and we leave no one behind. Do you have another way to keep out the terrorists that want to come here and bring the war to our soil?

      • Thanks for the softball complete with a terrible analogy to respond to Richie!
        –
        First, we should trash the implication that we have some kind of debt to Afghans whatsoever or that American’s were fighting over there to keep them from fighting us over here.
        –
        Regarding the “friendly neighbors” you’d fallaciously referred to, note that I wish them no harm but also note that they were helping themselves in exchange for American taxpayers’ money while many of them also lined their own pockets with the proceeds of criminal activities, inclusive of colossally expanded poppy production which has led directly to a tragic and avoidable global heroin epidemic.
        –
        And the 9/11 excuse is an easily refuted neocon canard. The 9/11 attackers were almost ALL Saudis and while we might reasonably believe that the story put forth by the Obama administration regarding the capture of Osama Bin Laden – a Saudi – was bogus, at least recall that his lair was said to be in Pakistan.
        –
        The fact remains that the U.S. was roped into a twenty year multi-trillion dollar policing debacle for the benefit of the MIC and other transnational enterprises which profited immensely from the expenditures of American lives and capital. There was nothing conservative about it.
        –
        Moreover and as to your preposterous suggestion that I might be okay with providing the Taliban with anything at all inclusive of the names of anyone, you’re laughably off base once again. Every single piece of infrastructure should have been leveled, every piece of materiel should have been removed or thoroughly destroyed, and every last scrap of paper and electronic data should have been torched beyond recovery while every last real American was being safely extricated.
        –
        So in answer to your unasked question of where should these “friendly neighbors” go if they don’t want to stick around their homeland, I shouldn’t have to point out for you that Afghan culture is completely incompatible with our culture and there are multiple nations much closer to home where they can carry on without burdening us any further and without expectations by us that should change their behaviors.
        –
        Surely the UN could make such arrangements; we pay for the preponderance of their funding anyway and Biden’s puppeteers could exert pressure on the UN to hand out bribes as might be necessary to facilitate safe passage of them to wherever they end up.
        –
        Any more questions?

      • Rich, with all due respect and I mean that, do you really have no feelings of trepidation with the import of so many unvetted muslim Afghanis?

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