James Sensenbrenner, May 9, 2003

As many of you know, the US government is currently attempting to locate 55 former top officials of the Saddam Hussein regime believed to have fled Iraq since the beginning of the war. According to sources referenced in the May 6, 2003, edition of The Washington Times, this process has been undermined by allegations that the French government in Syria issued French passports to a number of Iraqis who worked for the Saddam Hussein government.

These reports, if true, are disturbing and deserve investigation because such actions would show a complete disregard for our nation’s security interests, as well as a willingness by France to allow individuals who may have engaged in criminal acts to avoid detection and prosecution.

Consequently, on May 8, 2003, I sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, asking him to investigate these news reports and provide me with a briefing by Friday, May 16, 2003. My letter further suggested that this investigation should be carried out in coordination with the Department of State, the Department of Justice, the Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, and/or any other component of the United States government or any foreign government that may have information responsive to this issue.

If the French government did in fact issue its country’s passports to fleeing Iraqi officials, those officials would be able to enter the United States under the visa waiver program. The visa waiver program allows foreigners traveling from approximately two dozen designated countries to come to the United States as temporary visitors without having to obtain a visa. This program is based on the premise that nationals of participating countries pose little risk of being security threats or overstaying the period of their admittance.

But the possible entry of individuals of Saddam’s regime into the United States would pose a direct threat to the American public, and any action by the French government to provide those individuals with French passports would have been taken in reckless disregard of this threat.

The threat that French nationals might use the visa waiver program to enter the US to perform terrorist acts is not merely theoretical. Remember that Zacarias Moussaoui, who is widely believed to be the "20th September 11th hijacker," came to the US as a French national under the visa waiver program, using his legitimately issued French passport.

As I have said several times before, if we learned one thing from the events of September 11, 2001, it is that we need to be more vigilant about the way we conduct business both within the US as well as in the world. This is a big part of the reason why we went to war in Iraq, and it is why we should at least investigate these news reports.

In the late 1980s, for national security reasons, France required visas of American citizens. I can’t think of another time in our history when national security was more of a concern than it is today. If the US does suspend its visa waiver program with France, I understand that this may cause the French some inconvenience. But, as our allies, I would hope they would understand what we’re going through, and support us. After all, this is not personal, it’s about American security.

James Sensenbrenner, Jr., is a Republican Member of Congress representing the Fifth Congressional District of Wisconsin. He chairs the House Judiciary Committee.