Phillip Stucky, DCNF
Democratic Rep. Elizabeth Esty from Connecticut launched a tweetstorm Monday afternoon against President Donald Trump’s travel ban, but quickly backtracked after followers confronted her on her visa-related voting history.
Esty co-sponsored H.B. 158 on Dec. 3 2015, a bi-partisan bill that enabled the executive branch led by the Department of Homeland Security to severely limit or curtail visas from countries like Iran and Iraq.
Trump’s list of seven countries came primarily from the text of H.B. 158, but the executive order allows Trump to place a travel ban from any resident of those countries, excluding those with current green cards or legal residents of the United States.
That our nation issued a #MuslimBan & abandoned families fleeing terror on Holocaust Remembrance Day will forever stain our history. /1
— Elizabeth Esty (@RepEsty) January 29, 2017
The countless stories of innocent families torn apart by this EO are horrifying. This isn’t who we are; this can’t be what we become. /2
— Elizabeth Esty (@RepEsty) January 29, 2017
This issue transcends politics. Congress must act quickly, and I will work with any of my colleagues who will join me in doing so. /3
— Elizabeth Esty (@RepEsty) January 29, 2017
As @ChrisMurphyCT said, this EO will embolden ISIS & endanger us. It’s a national security threat & Congress must treat it that way. 4/4
— Elizabeth Esty (@RepEsty) January 29, 2017
Esty’s followers on Twitter were quick to remind the congresswoman about her voting history, going so far as to call her a “liar.”
REALLY @RepEsty? Because YOU co-sponsored it for Obama but it’s evil for @POTUS @realDonaldTrump. You’re a liar. https://t.co/AzsGNTrIyvhttps://t.co/MAian72be3
— Katica (@GOPPollAnalyst) January 30, 2017
Esty responded quickly, citing a Vox story that didn’t even mention the bill in question.
Literally nothing you said is true.
More details: https://t.co/v3KI228ZEC https://t.co/0UcJvrjaAS
— Elizabeth Esty (@RepEsty) January 30, 2017
Esty’s press office told The Daily Caller News Foundation the congresswoman didn’t mean to assert that she didn’t co-sponsor the bill, but rather the bill didn’t do the same thing as Trump’s executive order. The office added that Trump’s order is unique because it constitutes a blanket ban, while the bill that she co-sponsored only sought to reduce the number of visas issued from the same seven countries.
Esty’s co-sponsored Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015 prevented members of 38 countries to enter the U.S. for less than 90 days. The law prevented anyone from obtaining a visa into the country if they had visited any of the countries on the list within the last five years.
The American Civil Liberties Union opposed the measure before it was signed into law.
Other followers on Twitter weren’t having any of her response. One user posted a screenshot of the bill, along with a picture of her name on the co-sponsor page.
TownHall reported that President Barack Obama actually restricted travel based on country of origin several times — the first of which occurred because Obama continued a rule under former President George W. Bush that heavily restricted travel from 36 nations, primarily in the Middle East. Obama also signed an executive order that severely limited intake of refugees from Iraq, stalling any further influx for six months.
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