DHS inspector general finds vetting errors in 40% of sampled Afghan evacuee asylum files
A DHS inspector general report found errors in about 40% of a sample of Afghan evacuee asylum files, mostly missed aliases and documentation gaps. Right-leaning outlets frame it as a Biden-era failure, and they differ on what the report says about the cause.
1 / 4
The story, neutrally told
The Department of Homeland Security's inspector general reported vetting errors in about 40% of a sample of asylum files for Afghans resettled under Operation Allies Welcome. New York PostR “Vetting errors were found in 40% of asylum applications for Afghan migrants” Read at New York Post ↗ BreitbartR “The DHS IG now finds that 4 in 10 asylum files of Afghan migrants had vetting errors.” Read at Breitbart ↗ Reviewers analysed 678 applications drawn from 13,682 adjudicated cases. They counted 303 missed aliases and 23 missing security checks, plus other documentation problems. BreitbartR “We analyzed a statistical sample of 678 applications from the 13,682 adjudicated applications” Read at Breitbart ↗ New York PostR “found 303 missing aliases, 23 missing security checks” Read at New York Post ↗ Two cases involved people who may have been inadmissible on terrorism-related grounds. New York PostR “In two cases, missed aliases and incomplete documentation involved individuals who may have potentially been inadmissible to the US on “terrorism-related grounds.”” Read at New York Post ↗ BreitbartR “including two cases related to potential inadmissibility on terrorism-related grounds” Read at Breitbart ↗
The report said the consequences of such errors range from inconvenience to possible national security impact, depending on supervisory review. New York PostR “potentially impacting national security if the files weren’t reviewed by USCIS supervisors” Read at New York Post ↗ The review followed staff complaints that a 2023 settlement in Ahmed v. DHS forced faster processing of these claims. New York PostR “USCIS employees warned that a 2023 settlement in Ahmed v. DHS forced them to process asylum claims faster” Read at New York Post ↗ Just the NewsRC “The settlement directed USCIS to adjudicate 90% of OAW asylum applications within 150 days.” Read at Just the News ↗ The New York Post quotes the report as saying it saw no statistically significant rise in errors after the settlement. Just the News says instead that the report attributed the errors to the rushed timeline. New York PostR ““We did not observe a statistically significant increase in error rate after the September 2023 DHS settlement agreement,”” Read at New York Post ↗ Just the NewsRC “The OIG report said the rushed timeline resulted in a 40% error rate” Read at Just the News ↗
USCIS head Joseph Edlow accepted all five recommendations. He said the errors were administrative and occurred within established, thorough screening safeguards. New York PostR “agreed with all five of the DHS IG’s recommendations” Read at New York Post ↗ DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the Biden administration had mismanaged the program and that the current administration was ending such practices. Just the NewsRC “The Biden Administration dangerously mismanaged the Operation Allies Welcome program” Read at Just the News ↗ Outlets tie the report to earlier security concerns about the program, including an Oklahoma arrest over an alleged Election Day plot. The outlets disagree on the program's size: about 70,000 Afghans in one account, roughly 75,000 in another. BreitbartR “a 27-year-old Afghan man was arrested in Oklahoma last year after allegedly planning an Election Day terrorist attack on Americans”“resettlement of roughly 75,000 Afghans in mere months” Read at Breitbart ↗ New York PostR “which brought more than 70,000 Afghans to the US” Read at New York Post ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right4 outlets
- Framing
- All three outlets present the report as a Biden-administration failure and tie it to national security. They lead with the 40% figure and put the Biden label in headlines and ledes.
- Emphasis
- The 40% figure, the terrorism-related cases, Republican and DHS criticism, and earlier incidents such as the Oklahoma plot and the National Guard shooting. Breitbart adds a long list of earlier reports and allegations.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Only the New York Post reports the finding of no significant rise in errors after the settlement, and only it quotes USCIS's response that the errors were administrative. Just the News and Breitbart leave both out. Just the News adds that the program released criminal migrants, which the other two do not say. No left or centre outlets covered the story.
- Charged language
- “botched Afghanistan withdrawal”“dangerously mismanaged”“reckless and rushed”“bombshell report”“unvetted Afghans”
- For example
-
“DHS watchdog finds vetting errors in 40% of files for migrants who entered US during Biden’s botched Afghanistan withdrawal” — New York Post
“The Biden Administration dangerously mismanaged the Operation Allies Welcome program” — Just the News
“In September 2022, the DHS IG issued a bombshell report” — Breitbart
What every side reports
- The DHS inspector general found errors in about 40% of sampled Afghan Operation Allies Welcome asylum files.
- Missed aliases and incomplete documentation were the main errors, including two cases tied to possible terrorism-related inadmissibility.
- The review followed concerns about the 2023 Ahmed v. DHS settlement.
Where accounts differ
-
Whether the 2023 settlement's faster timelines caused the errors
- Right
- Just the News says the report found the rushed timeline resulted in the 40% error rate. The New York Post quotes the report as finding no statistically significant rise in errors after the settlement.
-
Whether the errors made the country less safe
- Right
- DHS Secretary Mullin (in Just the News) calls the program dangerously mismanaged. USCIS chief Edlow (in the New York Post) calls the errors administrative and says robust safeguards limited their impact. The report says consequences range from inconsequential to national-security relevant.
-
When the report was issued
- Right
- The New York Post says it was released Monday. Breitbart says it is dated 23 September. Just the News says it went to the department last week and DHS publicised it Tuesday.
-
The DHS inspector general found vetting errors in about 40% of sampled Afghan OAW asylum applications.
Supported- Supports 2
- Breitbart, Just the News
- Reports 1
- New York Post
Department of Homeland Security organisation
DHS leadership, as quoted by Just the News, says the Biden-era program was dangerously mismanaged and that the Trump administration is ending rushed asylum practices. Its component USCIS accepted the recommendations and defended its screening as thorough.
“the Trump Administration is putting the American people first and bringing an end to these reckless and rushed asylum practices” — Just the News
“The USCIS Refugee, Asylum and International Operations Directorate’s Asylum Division’s screen, vetting and security check procedures are well-established and thorough” — New York Post
Joseph Cuffari person
Named only by Breitbart, which says he revealed the vetting errors. The report language is quoted, and it warns that missed aliases could compromise file integrity.
“Inspector General (IG) Joseph Cuffari reveals that former President Joe Biden’s administration oversaw vetting errors” — Breitbart
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right4 articles
-
DHS report finds Biden Afghan refugee program had 40% error rate
Critical Leads with DHS's announcement and Secretary Mullin's condemnation, linking the errors to the rushed settlement timeline and to criminal releases.
-
Mixed Gives the most detail on the report, including its no-significant-increase finding and USCIS's rebuttal, while framing the story around the 'botched' withdrawal.
-
Federal Watchdog Reveals Vetting Errors in 40% of Biden's Afghan Migrants Resettled in U.S.
Alarmist Presents the finding as the latest in a series of Biden-era vetting failures, with a long list of earlier allegations.
-
- 29 Sep 08:52 First New York PostR DHS watchdog finds vetting errors in 40% of files for migrants who entered US during Biden’s botched Afghanistan withdrawal
- 29 Sep 20:22 +11h 30m BreitbartR Federal Watchdog Reveals Vetting Errors in 40% of Biden's Afghan Migrants Resettled in U.S.
- 30 Sep 00:48 +15h 56m Just the NewsRC DHS report finds Biden Afghan refugee program had 40% error rate
- 30 Sep 23:02 +38h 11m Fox NewsR Biden Afghan migrant program hit with 40% vetting failure rate: 'Alarming'
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.