CT Senate GOP highlight DHS “high” threat warning and state impact

For Immediate Release

Sen. Eric Berthel, Sen. Rob Sampson, and Sen. Stephen Harding, issued the following statement regarding the Department of Homeland Security’s Wednesday warning that the threat environment in the U.S. will “remain high” in the coming year, with undocumented immigrants with “terrorism ties” contributing to the elevated level.  The warning was preceded by a DHS Inspector General’s report which found undocumented immigrants were being allowed entry into the U.S. without identification — making it impossible to definitively determine whether they were on the terror watch list.

“Illegal immigration impacts policies in states across the country, including right here in Connecticut. Here in Connecticut, Democrats passed a law which greatly restricts local police and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from talking to each other.  Law enforcement’s hands have been tied even in the face of this high threat level and multiple warnings from federal officials. How does that make our communities safer?”

Sen. Berthel has been to the U.S. – Mexico border twice, joining the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Texas Department of Public Safety to witness firsthand the illegal immigration challenges that law enforcement faces.