During last week’s debate, Carly Fiorina pointed out the massive holes our intelligence communities face by not being able to check visa applicants’ social media.
“Every parent in America is checking social media…” she said, “but our government can’t do it?”
Well, Mrs. Fiorina is right, they’re not vetting visa applicants, but they’re more than willing to do it to our own veterans and patriots. MSNBC reports on the visa security hole below.
Top officials at the Department of Homeland Security considered a specific policy to strengthen security screenings for foreign visa applicants’ social media accounts, but the proposal was ultimately not adopted, according to an internal department memo obtained by MSNBC.
While the U.S. visa screening process does not include formal vetting of social media accounts, the memo proposed the Obama administration “authorize” customs officials to “access social networking sites” to vet applicants. Such vetting could help catch applicants bent on fraud, crime or “national security” risks, the memo stated.
The federal government considered that policy, according to a former senior official in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but officials passed on it in 2011.
“I thought it was a done deal,” said the former official, who would only speak anonymously about internal security discussions.
The memo went through roughly a year of revisions with agency lawyers, privacy officers and senior staff, the official added, and was about to be published as policy – but was then halted by senior officials.
“It’s unusual to go through the circulation process and revisions,” the official said, and then have a policy “not happen.”
“We are at war now,” the official added, “and we need all the tools we can get.”
With even intelligence agents saying they lack the Propper tools, Obama’s administration still seems to think that optics are more crucial than security.
Source: MSNBC
Even though DHS opts to not look at social media postings for immigrants coming from terrorist infested countries, patriots here at home are getting ARRESTED for what they say online.
Check out this story from almost 2 years ago.
Brad Ferko
but they watch ours. too many enemies in the white house
Assine Obama administration
Yes, I have noted that ONLY American citizens seem to be targeted by the Obama Thugocracy, and no one else.
They watch everything we do and say on the computer and cell phone, but not potential terrorists? Are you kidding? Can this government get any more obvious that they just want us all to die?
Just open another acct and keep going
DHS has foreigners & citizens on the watch list employed by them, isn’t doing their job , and are monitoring the wrong people on the Internet. Something is wrong with this picture.
Big mistake