Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL) encouraged the Trump administration to take a “hammer” to any foreign students seeking to harbor “pro-terrorist sympathies” within the nation, especially those committing “violent acts” on campuses.
Cammack explained that foreign students are experiencing a “privilege” by being able to study at colleges and universities, and argued revoking student VISAs is not too different from blocking immigration to foreign residents sympathetic to terrorist groups. The Trump administration has sought to crack down on the various rallies demonstrating antisemitic behavior, including canceling $400 million in grants and contracts from Columbia University and seeking to deport Mahmoud Khalil, a student at the school.
“So I think that the president was 100% correct in withholding federal funding from Columbia University, and I think we need to take a hammer to all of these students that have abused the privileges that have been afforded to them to study in this country,” Cammack argued on Fox News’s The Faulkner Focus. “And go even go so far as to say these are becoming foot soldiers for the pro-terror organizations abroad.”
The Florida lawmaker continued that free speech is allowed “so long as it doesn’t infringe upon the rights of others,” and pointed to how these protests have sought to “intimidate” the Jewish communities on college campuses. Cammack also noted how some students are trying to engage with the protesting students to “bring reason” to the situation, but warned that the protesting students do not wish to engage in debate and instead “want to terrorize people on campus.”
On Wednesday, Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman dismissed the Trump administration’s move to dismiss Khalil’s case, as the judge argued he did not have jurisdiction. Instead, Khalil’s case will be transferred to New Jersey. Furman has also retained his pause on Khalil’s deportation, which the New Jersey federal judge could overrule.
RUBIO ON MAHMOUD KHALIL’S ARREST: ‘DON’T HAVE A RIGHT TO BE IN THE US’
Last week, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) argued that foreign students on VISAs do not get to enjoy the benefits of the First Amendment, claiming the United States has “no obligation to let people in who hate this country.” He also suggested that foreign students who seek to abuse the “grace” gifted to them to study in the U.S. should get “a one-way ticket home.”
Amid the Trump administration’s work to combat pro-terror rallies on campus, the administration has utilized artificial intelligence to identify non-U.S. citizens residing in the country who are believed to support the Hamas terrorist group.