Sen. Jim Banks’ bill comes on the heels of the weekend attack in Colorado where Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national whose visa expired in March, allegedly targeted a pro-Israel protest . (Getty/Boulder PD)
Banks’ bill comes on the heels of the weekend attack in Colorado where Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national whose visa expired in March, allegedly targeted a pro-Israel protest meant to advocate for the release of hostages still held by the terror organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
In a one-pager of the bill obtained by Fox News Digital, Banks explicitly pointed to Soliman, along with the Sept. 11, 2001 hijackers, as examples of people who overstayed their visas.
ALLEGED BOULDER TERRORIST OVERSTAYED VISA, GRANTED WORK PERMIT BY BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
Then-Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during Politico's annual AI and Tech Summit on Sept. 17, 2024, in Washington. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Along with reclassifying those that overstay their visas, his legislation would make visa overstays a misdemeanor criminal offense punishable by a maximum of six months behind bars for first-time offenders, which would crank up to a maximum of two years for subsequent offenses.
It would also raise civil penalties to between $500 and $1000, with penalties doubling for each subsequent offense. Currently, visa overstay penalties start at $50.
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Soliman on Sunday allegedly attacked the "Run for Their Lives" group, which was engaged in a peaceful protest advocating for the release of hostages held by Hamas. He allegedly used Molotov cocktails on the group, injuring eight people whose ages ranged from 52 to 88-years-old. One of the victims was a survivor of the Holocaust.
Since then, Soliman has been charged with a federal hate crime, attempted murder, assault and other charges following what the FBI dubbed a "targeted terror attack." Combined, the charges against Soliman carry a total of 624 years.
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-republican-aims-treat-visa-overstayers-like-illegal-entrants-response-colorado-terror-attack