Trump’s “Muslim Ban” First Ordered by Obama
Anti-Trump protestors have egg on their faces after it emerged that the list of Muslim countries whose citizens have been barred by Executive Order from entering the U.S. was based on a list signed into law by former President Barack Obama in December 2015.
The Obama law, titled the “Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act” (H. R.158), specifically barred nationals from Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Sudan from entering the U.S. without first submitting to interrogation and specialist vetting—including face-to-face interviews in their home countries before setting off.
The law placed restrictions on the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol’s Visa Waiver Program (VWP), which normally allowed citizens from 38 pre-designated countries—mostly European nations—who are visiting the United States for less than 90 days to enter without a visa.
Read the rest at The New Observer.
