Sen. Jeff Sessions reacted to the news of the Orlando nightclub shooting after officials identified the attack as an act of terror, and urged the United States to be vigilant about “Islamic extremism.”
“Well, it certainly looks like another one of the extremist attacks, Islamic extremism,” Sessions said pointing to the radical element in the religion.
“It’s been there for a long time and it seems to be growing and we have to accept that fact,” he said. “We have to be cautious about it.”
Sessions cited the Senate Judiciary Committee report showing that 570 individuals had been convicted or charged with ties to terrorism since 9/11.
“It’s not stopping,” he said. “We see apparently today more of these attacks are coming. It’s a real part of the threat that we face and if we can’t address it openly and directly and say directly that there is an extremist element within Islam that’s dangerous to the world and has to be confronted.”
Sessions warned Americans to “slow down” on foreign born admissions into the United States, particularly those with Islamic backgrounds.
“It’s a serious matter. I wish it weren’t so. I wish there were some easy solution, but there’s not,” he said. “We have to be more vigilant.”