Republican lawmakers are calling for tighter immigration restrictions after an Afghan national was identified as a suspect in the shooting of two National Guard members Wednesday in Washington, D.C., near the White House.
Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, were shot multiple times while on duty near the Farragut West Metro station. Fellow National Guard members quickly subdued the attacker, preventing additional casualties.
In a post on X, Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., shared a New York Post headline about the incident and wrote: "Deport them all. Now."
Authorities identified the suspect as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakamal, an Afghan national who entered the U.S. under the Operation Allies Welcome program, the post-withdrawal relocation program for Afghan allies.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., wrote in a post on X: "The Afghan terrorist who shot 2 National Guard heroes in D.C. was welcomed into this country with open arms by Joe Biden. We must IMMEDIATELY BAN all ISLAM immigrants and DEPORT every single Islamist who is living among us just waiting to attack."
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., urged immediate vetting of all individuals who came to the United States during the Biden administration's effort to resettle Afghan refugees who assisted the U.S. during the 20-year war.
"Outraged to learn the monster who ruthlessly shot two members of our National Guard was let into our country during [former President Joe] Biden's reckless Afghanistan withdrawal," Scott wrote in a post on X.
"He MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE, and we must pass my Afghan Vetting Accountability Act to identify and conduct recurrent vetting of evacuees from Afghanistan found not to be properly vetted before entering the United States, so this NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN!"
Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., echoed his colleagues' criticism.
"Let's be clear about this: the reckless, lazy, and outright dishonest policy decisions of Joe Biden, [former national security adviser] Jake Sullivan, [former Secretary of State] Antony Blinken, and [former White House press secretary] Jen Psaki led to the shooting of two National Guard members," he wrote in a post on X.
Shortly after the shooting, War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that President Donald Trump had requested an additional 500 Guard members for the capital.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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