GOP presidential candidates and lawmakers who are pushing for legislation to halt the nation's refugee program are "more focused on politics than [national] security" White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Wednesday, and President Barack Obama "believes clearly" that such rhetoric only backs the arguments of the Islamic State.
"The fact of the matter is the West is not at war with Islam," Earnest told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program. "For Republicans to erode that progress and undermine that message only serves to advance the arguments of ISIL. The president standing up and speaking out does serve our national interest."
Earnest's words echoed those of the president himself on Wednesday, who lashed out at Republicans who oppose Syrian refugees from coming into the United States, mocking opponents as being "scared of widows and orphans."
"We are not well served when in response to a terrorist attack we descend into fear and panic," the president said during a meeting with Philippine President Benigno Aquino.
Earnest also appeared on Fox News' Fox and Friends program on Wednesday, where he commented that refugees who are admitted to the United States undergo more rigorous screening than anybody else who tries to enter the country, typically taking between 18 and 24 months to be cleared.
"This means they're subjected to background interviews, biometric information is collected from them," he said. "Their information is run through national security databases...these are the victims of ISIL. These are the victims of that terrible war inside of Syria. It is in our interest as a country to continue to uphold our tradition of giving them a home in the United States."
Earnest told MSNBC, meanwhile, that Obama is focused on his trip to Asia, but that he has "laid out a strategy for more than a year now for degrading and ultimately destroying the terrorist organization."
The White House welcomes the increased attacks from France and Russia overnight in Syria, he continued, pointing out that France for some time has been part of the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS in Syria and Iraq.
"When it comes to the Russians, we welcome the change in strategy," said Earnest, as they are "not spending so much time focused on shoring up their client, Bashar al-Assad."
Earnest also told the program that Europe faces a larger risk when it comes to ISIS than the United States does, but Obama "doesn't take lightly the risk that does exist."
Before leaving on the Asia trip, Obama met with his advisers to make sure all the steps have been taken that are necessary to protect the homeland.
The cooperation with the United States has helped France ramp up its attacks in Syria, said Earnest, as the coalition has laid the groundwork that gave France the opportunity to stand up.
"There should be no denying the fact that the [reason the] French are in the position to carry out this response is because of early investment that the president ordered a year ago," he said.
Related Stories:
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.