US Lawmaker Challenges Secretary of State
(MENAFN) During a tense session of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal confronted Secretary of State Marco Rubio, strongly criticizing him for undermining constitutional liberties by rescinding a Turkish graduate student's visa.
The revocation followed the student’s co-authorship of a critical op-ed about Israel, raising alarms about the potential infringement of free speech rights.
The controversy revolves around Rumeysa Ozturk, a doctoral candidate at Tufts University. In March, her visa was annulled by the State Department.
Jayapal referenced a confidential department document which reportedly acknowledged the absence of any proof that Ozturk presented a danger to the nation’s security.
Jayapal pointed out that the decision appeared to stem solely from Ozturk’s involvement in an editorial published in the university newspaper.
In the piece, Ozturk called for Tufts to sever financial ties with Israel and recognize what she termed the “genocide” of Palestinians.
Jayapal directly challenged Rubio, asking whether he believed that Ozturk’s editorial could realistically produce any significant foreign policy implications for the United States.
She further questioned the legal basis for his authority, demanding, “Where in the Constitution does it say that the secretary of state can override First Amendment protections of free speech?”
In response, Rubio maintained that the department's decision was justified.
He emphasized that foreign nationals are not entitled to a visa as a right but are instead extended that access as a discretionary benefit.
“There is no constitutional right to a student visa,” he stated, asserting the department’s prerogative to deny entry regularly.
“We deny visas every day all over the world,” he remarked, adding, “I will continue to revoke the visas of these people... They are guests.”
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