DoS gives Iraq interpreter the shaft

[Rakkasan]

A State Department bureaucrat is denying an entry visa for a decorated Iraqi translator for some very odd reasons. Joel Mowbray at Fox News broke the story on Friday, and milbloggers are up in arms here and here. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

[Ron Humphrey]

A State Department bureaucrat is denying an entry visa for a decorated Iraqi translator for some very odd reasons. Joel Mowbray at Fox News broke the story on Friday, and milbloggers are up in arms here and here. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

When in war anyone who gives aid and comfort to you(let alone the extra efforts of actually fighting with you) should be immediately considered for such a thing if the commander they worked with ask for it. If your concerned about their past associations then fine study the crap out of them but you better have a darn good reason for taking away your military's credibility when they try to tell someone you work with us we'll work with you.

Hopefully they have a lot more then just whats been presented so far, cause whats there so far sure doesn't seem like enough.

[Stan]

I’m not at all interested in defending DOS and have no intention of being the devil’s advocate herein. With that here’s my $0.02 after nearly two decades of duty and relations at Embassies.

The translator has a criminal record regardless of the reasons why he stole one of Uday Hussein’s cars. That act may actually be grand theft auto depending on which one he chose to use for the purported escape. Stealing cars is not a political act, or is it?

Whatever.

The Counselor Officer (typically one of the most junior at post) has approximately a two-minute interview and the applicant’s records available to make a gut decision that could cost him/her a job and years of ridicule. People like me at post can intervene with a “referral”, but even a referral won’t clean a dirty slate. Referrals also tend to bite back… Trust me, I have first-hand experience.

There’s more from the other side of the fence here at Beltway Blips:

US Department of State: Questions & Answers

I'm not at all sure what Homeland has to do with this. People should be addressing the INS (that's where things actually happen once in CONUS).

EDIT... Found something even more confusing here

More on this subject at State:

Who can apply? What are the requirements for the applicant?
Foreign nationals may self-petition for this special immigrant visa classification as COM or U.S. Armed Forces candidates if they meet all of the following requirements:

* Must be a national of Iraq or Afghanistan.
* Must have worked directly with the U.S. Armed Forces or under Chief of Mission authority as a translator or interpreter for a period of at least 12 months.
* Must have obtained a favorable written recommendation from a General or Flag Officer in the chain of command of the U.S. Armed Forces unit that was supported by the translator, or from the Chief of Mission from the Embassy where he/she worked.
* Must have cleared a background check and screening as determined by a General or Flag Officer in the chain of command of the U.S. Armed Forces unit that was supported by the translator, or by the Chief of Mission.
* Must be otherwise eligible to receive an immigrant visa and is otherwise admissible to the U.S. for permanent residence, except in determining such admissibility, the grounds for inadmissibility specified in section 212 (A)(4) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1182 (a)(4) relating to "public charge" shall not apply).

Many more reasons and regulations at the link

[Schmedlap]

I think Stan found the right information - the letter from a General Officer, in particular. I recall attempting to get a Visa for one of our translators in 2007. I'm not sure who found the rules - I think they were similar to the ones that Stan found - but among the rules was a letter from a GO. We got it. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if we crossed all of our T's and dotted all of our I's. The translator was killed by a suicide bomber before we could process the paperwork. If there is any silver lining, all of the documentation of his credentials made it easier to obtain $10,000 for his widow.