Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas refused to answer questions from Fox News Senior White House Correspondent Jacqui Heinrich on Thursday regarding the arrest of an Afghan national suspected of plotting an Election Day attack.
FBI agents arrested 27-year-old Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and charged him in connection with a plot to carry out an attack with two AK-47-style semiautomatic rifles. Heinrich questioned Mayorkas during a Thursday White House press briefing on hurricane recovery efforts.
“This Afghan national who was working for the CIA in Afghanistan was arrested for planning an Election Day terror plot,” Heinrich said. “He was brought to the U.S. after Afghanistan collapsed, your agency says as part of the SIV program. The State Department is telling us he was not part of the SIV program, which had strenuous vetting. They say he was never issued an SIV or immigrant visa, and DHS paroled him into the U.S. They further expect the court document to be updated to reflect this from the DOJ side. So, Mr. Secretary, how was this man brought into the U.S.? What screening did he undergo? What did he apply for to get here?”
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“Jacqui, I — I’m here in North Carolina, communicating with the individuals who are still conducting search and rescue operations, over 200 people have lost their lives in Hurricane Helene,” Mayorkas responded. “We have reports that at least 10 individuals have lost their lives as a result of Hurricane Milton. I’d be very pleased to answer your question in a different setting, but we’re here to talk about emergencies and the support that we can deliver to people in desperate need. Thank you.”
Tawhedi was allowed into the U.S. on a special immigrant visa in September 2021, shortly after the U.S. pulled out of Afghanistan, according to court documents.
“I appreciate that, Mr. Secretary, but we’re getting conflicting answers from your agency and from the State Department about a man who was arrested for an Election Day terror plot. How do you not have those answers prepared?” Heinrich asked, prompting Mayorkas to dodge the question again.
“Mr. Secretary, can you assure people that appropriate steps have been taken to secure the country against these kinds of threats?” Heinrich persisted. “Because the outstanding question is whether this man was radicalized before the U.S. government brought him here or afterward, and people should be concerned about that.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has come under fire in recent days over the efficacy of the relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Helene, which has killed at least 227 people.
