Retired Military Leaders Oppose Adding Amnesty to The National Defense Authorization Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Emily Cashel, Shirley & Banister Public Affairs

[email protected]/703-739-5920/800-536-5920

May 5, 2014                                                                                                   

‘Trojan Horse’ Gambit Could Jeopardize Important Legislation, Security

Washington, DC – On the eve of the House Armed Services Committee’s consideration of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this Wednesday, sixteen influential former leaders of the U.S. military wrote the panel’s chairman, Rep. Howard ‘Buck’ McKeon to express their opposition to an amendment expected to be offered by Rep. Mike Coffman of Colorado.  The amendment would open service in the armed forces to illegal aliens brought here as minors by their parents (so-called “Dreamers.”)

The flag and general officers drawn from each of the four services wrote, in part:

…We believe it a serious mistake to open military service to those known to have violated the laws of the United States.  Whether they have done so by coming to this country illegally and living here in violation of immigration statutes, either at their own initiative or as a result of the actions of family members, they have acted in a manner inconsistent with the oath to support and defend the Constitution that they will be required to swear upon enlisting.  Until now, such conduct has been deemed disqualifying and we believe it should continue to be so.

The military leaders also expressed concern about what has been described as a “Trojan Horse” ploy – using the Coffman amendment to the must-pass NDAA as a just a starting point for including a more sweeping amnesty and other changes to U.S. immigration and border security laws.  Members of the House leadership and lawmakers on the Senate Armed Services Committee seem determined to enact such legislation in the face of opposition from a “majority of the majority” in the House of Representatives and many millions of voters.

Such an action is even more unthinkable given that the opening of the door to military service by illegal aliens would come at a moment when tens of thousands of American citizens who have served their country in uniform with distinction are being forced to separate involuntarily from the armed forces. As Frank J. Gaffney, Jr., the president of the Center for Security Policy, which facilitated the officers’ joint letter, put it: “It will be hard to portray what is afoot as other than insinuating illegal aliens into the military to do jobs U.S. citizens are not only willing to do; they are willing to die to do.  The impact on morale within the ranks, to say nothing of possible problems with the loyalties of such aliens, cannot be underestimated.”

[CLICK HERE TO VIEW PDF OF THE JOINT LETTER]

[CLICK HERE FOR A PDF OF THE ABOVE PRESS RELEASE]

For more information, contact Emily Cashel at 703-739-5920 or [email protected].

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Military Leaders Letter on NDAA Immigration Amendment