Washington, D.C. – On Monday, President Donald Trump issued a second executive order banning entry into the United States for foreign nationals from Sudan, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen. Federal courts halted President Trump’s first executive order banning travel from Muslim-majority countries, in part because the government did not provide any substantive evidence to support the need for a ban. Congresswoman Terri A. Sewell releases the following statement:

“The issue of national security is one of my top priorities, but today’s executive order fails to address the major concerns raised by the travel ban that federal courts struck down last month,” said Rep. Terri Sewell. “The facts show that a ban like the President issued today doesn’t make us any safer. A person’s country of origin tells us little about their ties to terrorism. In fact, none of the past decade’s terrorist attacks in the United States were launched by immigrants from any of the countries banned in the new executive order. What’s more, today’s travel ban puts us at odds with Muslim-majority countries in a region of the world where we need more allies, not more enemies. This executive order is more focused on discrimination than it is on our national security.”

In a unanimous decision this February, the 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a restraining order against President Trump’s original immigration action, ruling that the government did not present evidence that nationals from affected countries perpetrated attacks in the United States. President Trump and senior White House officials have repeatedly stated that the repackaged executive order would have the same goals and outcome as the original order struck down by the courts.

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Rep. Terri A. Sewell (D-AL) is serving her fourth term representing Alabama’s 7th Congressional district. She sits on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and was recently appointed to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. Sewell is a Chief Deputy Whip and serves on the prestigious Steering and Policy Committee of the Democratic Caucus. She is also a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, and serves as Vice Chair of the Congressional Voting Rights Caucus, and Vice Chair of Outreach for the New Democrat Coalition.