Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum has come out swinging against the Obama administration's new travel rules that would allow exceptions for business travelers flying to and from Iran — a caveat he fears will encourage terrorism.
"I'm speechless. This is crazy," Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, said Thursday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on
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"How can a president of the United States who is charged with protecting this country loosen visa requirements from the area of the world where we know there are people who want to attack us?
"And [for which] we have no reliable way in which to do background checks? It makes no sense. It's Looney Tune time."
The Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that foreigners who have recently traveled to Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria can no longer visit the United States without first obtaining a visa.
But it is cutting slack for business travelers who travel to and from Iran — part of a promise the State Department made to Iran when it inked the controversial nuclear arms deal with that nation.
This includes fliers traveling for the government or the United Nations, those who have legitimate business with Iran, journalists, and people involved in humanitarian work.
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