Rep. Vern Buchanan calls for moratorium on accepting Syrian refugees into U.S. after Paris attacks

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, called on President Barack Obama on Monday to impose an immediate moratorium on accepting refugees from Syria into the United States.

One of the attackers involved in Paris shootings and bombings that killed 132 people reportedly may have slipped into the country disguised as a refugee. Buchanan wrote in a letter to Obama that officials should not "gamble with our national security."

"It is clear that radical Islam is waging war against America and Western civilization," Buchanan said in a release. "We cannot allow terrorists to seep through a porous refugee screening process to kill Americans."

Buchanan advocated instead for creating safe zones for refugees inside Syria or in neighboring countries, adding that the U.S. should aid in that effort but not be the "main financier."

Buchanan added that FBI Director James Comey testified before Congress last month that the refugee screening process was flawed because there was a lack of intelligence on the ground in Syria.

"I urge you to abandon your plan to bring 10,000 or more Syrian refugees into the United States and work with the international community to create safe zones in or around Syria," Buchanan wrote to Obama.

This story was originally published November 16, 2015 at 10:58 AM with the headline "Rep. Vern Buchanan calls for moratorium on accepting Syrian refugees into U.S. after Paris attacks ."