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Kirk Ad Hits Duckworth on National Security

December 1, 2015

Sen. Mark Kirk (R., Ill.) is launching its second statewide television ad of the 2016 Illinois Senate race blasting Democratic candidate Rep. Tammy Duckworth on national security.

The ad criticizes Duckworth for backing a plan to resettle 200,000 Syrian refugees in the United States and voting against legislation to strengthen national security screening requirements to weed out potential Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL) supporters.

"The facts remain that ISIS used the Syrian refugee crisis to smuggle its terrorists into France and carry out their tragic and deadly acts," said Kirk’s campaign manager Kevin Artl in a statement.

"Yet Rep. Duckworth continues to ignore the concerns of the Director of the FBI, Director of National Intelligence, and the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center about our government’s flawed vetting process which cannot ensure that these refugees are not part of ISIS."

A recent report by ABC News raised questions about the effectiveness of the current refugee screening process. A previous ABC News investigation in 2013 found that two Iraqi refugees resettled in Kentucky turned out to be terrorists with links to al Qaeda, and dozens of other suspected terrorists may have been allowed into the United States as well.

Kirk has called on the Obama administration to suspend the Syrian resettlement program until additional safeguards are put into place.

"Instead of listening to the experts, Rep. Duckworth is doubling down on a reckless plan to let in 200,000 Syrians—20 times more than the amount the Obama Administration is requesting," said Artl. "Rep Duckworth’s plan demonstrates a complete lack of judgment and creates unnecessary security risks for American families."