McCAUL: As you know I’ve been over to Jordan to see the refugee camps. We’re a compassionate nation. This is very tragic situation but also I have to have be concerned as Chairman of Homeland Security about the safety of Americans in this country, and the concern that I have is the FBI testified to is that we don’t really have the proper databases on these individuals to get them passed to ensure that we are not allowing terrorists to come into this country. And until I have that assurance I cannot support a program that could potentially bring jihadists into see United States.

JARRETT: We don’t have the intel on the ground, we don’t have the biometric abilities the databases that’s really required to vet these people, and in point of fact I read a letter from you recently to President Obama about this very subject. You pointed out al Qaida successfully exploited the refugee resettlement program a few years ago.

McCAUL: When we had Iraqis come in we had better intelligence on the ground. An Iraqi came into the United States who had killed Americans in the Iraq war. In Syria we have very little human intelligence, if any, so we don’t know who these people are, and I think that’s the bottom line here. Until we know who they are, we cannot responsibly bring them into the United States

JARRETT: Do we know that ISIS has already been able to infiltrate and in fact see some refugee camps in Syria?

McCAUL: We have intelligence reports that the terrorists want to exploit the refugee process to get not only into Europe but also into the United States. In light of that evidence that I have before me, I can’t in good faith support a program that could endanger Americans

JARRETT: As I mentioned you been raising alarms for months. You wrote a letter to President Obama in February asking for concrete answers to your legitimate request you sent another one and did you ever hear from the President?

McCAUL: Absolutely no response and I think that’s very disrespectful to the process. Look, if they want to support this program they have to justify it before Congress will accept this, and I think the state of play right now — again, it’s a very tragic situation playing out — we’re a compassionate nation, but we need assurances were not gonna bring in terrorists into the United States.

JARRETT: Are you happy with the Department of Homeland Security as it’s currently being operated?

McCAUL: I have a lot of concerns. I think in this case, both the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI told me privately that they don’t support bringing in Syrian refugees because of the threat they pose to Americans. I think the State Department obviously wants to bring them in.