Ben Carson Says U.S. Needs To Stop Immigrants From Troubled Countries From Entering
COSTA MESA (CBSLA.com) — Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson said the San Bernardino terror attack clearly indicated that it is time to stop letting immigrants from Syria and other troubled parts of the world from entering the United States, at least temporarily.
He spoke to CBS2/KCAL9's Dave Bryan at a fundraiser in Costa Mesa on Friday. "We're going to put a moratorium on bringing people in here who are suspicious," said the 64-year-old GOP presidential hopeful. "I would just say, right now, we're going to halt this until we can put in place something that actually works."
But one of the shooters in the San Bernardino terror attack, Syed Farook, was born in the U.S. His wife, Tashfeen Malik, had a passport from Pakistan and came to America on a "fiance visa" because she was marrying Farook. She is believed to have had no record of terror activity. So it is unclear what kind of immigration screening system would have rejected her entry.
When asked how he would deal with home-grown terrorists, Carson said: "I think what we need to do is to monitor the Internet. We need to monitor social media. I don't see anything wrong with trying to disrupt their communication. Being able to target them. Being able to target their servers."
The retired neurosurgeon said another solution is to teach people to be vigilant. "The greatest defense will be the American people themselves. When you see something, say something," he said.
When Bryan told Carson that many experts believe the war on ISIS cannot be won without putting troops on the ground, he said: "I think we certainly need to combat them. We have to do it in ways that actually works. Use what you need. You understand what your plan is. You get your military experts. You ask them what do you need in order to accomplish that. And that's what you provide."
Bryan also asked Carson what he would do, if elected as president, to protect Americans from terror attacks such as the San Bernardino massacre. "First of all, I've got to assure the American people that you are not blind, and that you are looking at this situation, and that you recognize this terrorist activity," said