WASHINGTON— Today, Representative Jim Banks (IN-03) introduced the No Visas for Violent Criminals Act, legislation that would terminate any visa and require deportation within 60 days of any non-citizen convicted of a criminal offense during a protest. Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
Said Rep. Jim Banks, “For months, pro-Hamas rioters have terrorized communities across the U.S. without consequence. Foreigners who come here to spread antisemitism, block highways, and deface statues and other public property must be deported immediately. Senator Cotton’s and my bill would do exactly that.”
Said Senator Tom Cotton, “The Biden administration’s inaction against pro-Hamas mobs has only emboldened these extremists. Our legislation makes clear that a green card does not give individuals the right to break our laws in support of anti-Semitic views.”
A text of the bill can be found here.
The No Visas for Violent Criminals Act would immediately terminate any visa and require deportation within 60 days of any non-citizen convicted of:
- Any offense involves obstructing highways, roads, bridges, or tunnels.
- Any offense related to the individual’s conduct at and during a protest at an institution of higher education or religious institution in the United States.
- Any offense involving the defacement or destruction of federal property (including but not limited to monuments and memorials). This also applies to any aggravated felony (as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1101 (43)).
