FORT DODGE, Iowa — Hillary Clinton on Friday called for a “hard look” at the visa waiver program that allowed a Pakistani woman to enter the United States and, along with her husband, kill 14 people at a social services center in San Bernardino, California.
“Visas are a problem and we have to look at that and see what we need to do to tighten up requirements,” Clinton told reporters at a campaign stop in Fort Dodge, making comparisons to the 9/11 hijackers who also came to the country on visas.
Tashfeen Malik was admitted through a fiancée visa — also known as a K-1 visa — to marry Syed Farook, federal authorities confirmed Friday.
Both were killed by police Wednesday following the shooting rampage at the Inland Regional Center, which is now officially being investigated as a terrorism case.
Clinton urged Congress to take a “very thorough and comprehensive look” at the visa program and stressed the importance of information sharing between countries.
“It's a calculated balance between wanting to keep our country open for people coming and going and reciprocity with other countries and being sure that we are being vigilant in protecting ourselves,” she said. “I think we have to make sure we do more to get the balance right.”
The Democratic front-runner also defended herself against Republican attacks for pushing gun control immediately after the San Bernardino mass shooting and before it was clear terrorism was a factor.
“I don’t see any conflict at all between going after the terrorists with everything we’ve got — better coordination from local law enforcement to federal to international sources that we can put to work — and doing more on gun safety measures,” Clinton said. “I see no contradiction.”
