Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) said the bill targets Islamic terrorists while blatantly ignoring homegrown terrorism committed by white supremacists. | AP Photo Dems object as House panel approves terrorist recruitment bill

A House committee approved a bill Wednesday aimed at hindering terrorist' recruitment efforts online and abroad, over angry objections from Democrats who accused the panel of unfairly singling out Muslims.

"I think particularly after what happened yesterday, we can’t afford to wait," Homeland Security Chairman Mike McCaul (R-Texas) said, just a day after a series of terrorist bombings in Brussels killed at least 31 people and injured another 270. "We can’t afford to wait and do nothing in this Congress."


But Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) said the bill targets Islamic terrorists while blatantly ignoring homegrown terrorism committed by white supremacists, such as last year's massacre of nine African-Americans at a church in Charleston, S.C.

"I think this is one of the committee’s lowest moments," she said. "This could’ve been a historic moment."

So what was supposed to be a mundane markup stretched to roughly four hours of debate while members squabbled over the bill, with each side accusing the other of “partisan hijacking” of Tuesday’s attacks. The committee ultimately approved the two-page bill along party lines.

The bill ( H.R. 4820), introduced two days ago, would require the Department of Homeland Security to collect and use the testimony of former terrorists, and possibly their friends and family, in efforts to stymie the recruitment efforts of violent extremist groups like the Islamic State, which claimed responsibility for the Brussels attack.

Democrats asked several times for McCaul to delay a vote on the bill until members come back from a two-week recess and have more time to digest the measure. When Republicans didn't acquiesce, the committee's top Democrat, Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, rolled out a slew of amendments that McCaul said his side hadn't seen before Wednesday.

“I don’t know what these shenanigans are about,” said Texas Republican Rep. Will Hurd. "We shouldn’t be playing politics with national security, especially after what happened" in Brussels.

But Democrats countered that the bill is a rush job that could do significant damage to DHS efforts to counteract terrorist recruitment.

“Maybe this bill is moving in a direction that we should consider, but it is not there,” said Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey.

“If we’re going to invade and send our undercover agents in mosques, then we need to send them to the Christian churches also," she added.

But McCaul countered, saying the bill specifically targets violent extremists and wouldn't unfairly single out innocent citizens of any race or religion.

"We're turning this into a race issue and this is not a race issue," McCaul said.

DHS also has a laundry list of concerns with the measure, including a lack of manpower to implement the requirements and the possibility that the bill could interfere with future FBI and Justice Department investigations.

In written comments to the committee, department officials said they were also concerned that such a bill could damage DHS efforts to build relationships with the Muslim community, especially if citizens thought they were under surveillance or the department was deploying informants to collect the testimonials.

"DHS cautions that public perception of how these testimonials are obtained could affect ... community engagement and countering violent extremism efforts — especially with the Muslim community," officials wrote. "Gaining and maintaining the trust of the community is central to the success of our outreach efforts."