House Republicans are promoting a bill that would make foreign students who support terrorist organizations ineligible to remain in the U.S., a response to pro-Hamas protesters who brought chaos to Washington, D.C., Wednesday.
Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., introduced a bill Thursday directing U.S. officials to deport any foreigner on a student visa who “has participated in activity in support of, or as an endorsement of, a foreign terrorist organization.”
The legislation came in response to crowds of people around Washington, D.C., who burned an American flag, vandalized monuments, and praised anti-Israel terrorists on Wednesday to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress.
Authorities ordered protesters to disperse later in the afternoon and arrested almost two dozen.
“We will not stand for the chaos and antisemitic violence across our campuses and cities,” Langworthy said in a press release Thursday. “It’s a privilege to come to the United States to study, not a free pass to come to our country to spread hate, burn our flag, and vandalize our institutions.
“This bill ensures anyone here on a student visa who supports a foreign terrorist organization will be deported, protecting our national security and making it clear that we have zero tolerance for terrorism.”
Reps. Randy Weber, R-Texas; Cory Mills, R-Fla.; and Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., are co-sponsors of the bill.
“If you are in America on a visa and you’re supporting a terrorist organization, we don’t want you here,” Weber remarked. “This is the greatest country on earth, and if you’re protesting on behalf of a bunch of thugs who kill, rape, and torment their own people, you can take that protest right back to where you came from.”
Support for Middle Eastern terrorist groups was abundant at Wednesday’s demonstrations. The Daily Signal documented signs, T-shirts, flags, and other items with images representing Hamas, its Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, a Palestinian terrorist who hijacked planes, and more.
Republicans in Congress have introduced bills over the past several months to deport people who endorse terrorists. None have become law.
