KMA Land - Young Questions Homeland Security Visas

News Article

by Mike Peterson

Iowa Congressman David Young is taking aim at a Department of Homeland Security official for alleged improper actions.

Young recently grilled U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson regarding the activities of Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. In his weekly interview during KMA's 7:35 newscast Wednesday morning, Young says a report from the department's Office of Inspector General indicate Mayorkas broke protocol by approving three visa applications.

"These visa applications are what they call EB-5 applications," the congressman said. "They're basically for foreign investors who commit to spending a certain amount of money in the United States to create jobs. Out of the 700 applications, Deputy Secretary Mayorkas personally got involved in three. He was lobbied on these."

The Van Meter Republican claims key Democrats such as former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, Nevada Senator Harry Reid, and Tony Rodham--Hillary Rodham Clinton's brother--lobbied for the visas.

"The folks up and down the line in the Department of Homeland Security," he said, "the career folks who are involved in these visa applications, raised the red flag, and said they broke protocol, and broke norms, and that's what the deputy secretary did. The Inspector General found this was out of the normal. Essentially, it's undue political influence is what happened here."

Young and Iowa Senator Charles Grassley hope to question Mayorkas directly about the allegations. He says the controversy surrounding the Homeland Security official is an example of mismanagement and a lack of accountability in the Obama Administration.

"We saw it recently with the Secret Service," said Young, "with those two gentlemen who were out partying one night, and crashed into the White House grounds, and interrupted a potential crime scene in which there was a suspicious package. It is breaking the trust up and down the line within these departments."

The congressman, however, says similar incidents have occurred in other administrations.

"I think it's happened in every administration," he said. "But it seems like we're learning a lot more, and that there's probably more out there. There's probably more out there in other administrations, too--Republican or Democrat. It's kind of like when you see a cockroach in the kitchen--you know that there's probably 10 more behind the refrigerator."

Young credits whistleblowers in the Homeland Security department for bringing the issue to Congress' attention. Mayorkas has denied any wrongdoing.

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