The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today announced it has sent a letter to the House Foreign Affairs Committee urging members to reject the anti-free speech “passport killer” Section 226 of H.R. 5300, misleadingly titled the “No Passports for Terrorists and Traffickers” provision.
CLICK HERE: READ CAIR’S LETTER
The provision, scheduled for markup during the Committee’s State Department reauthorization hearing on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, would grant Secretary of State Marco Rubio sweeping unilateral authority to deny or revoke U.S. passports based on vague “material support” allegations.
In a statement, CAIR Government Affairs Department Director Robert S. McCaw, who sent the letter, said:
“The effect of Section 226 is to shield Israel from First Amendment-protected criticism and to strip Americans of their fundamental right to travel. This legislation places Israel First over the rights of American citizens. The provision is vague by design and does not require conviction or even charge – only the Secretary’s unilateral ‘determination.’ Such language invites abuse and strips courts of meaningful oversight. Secretaries like Marco Rubio have already politicized such powers, targeting students and scholars with baseless actions that courts had to overturn. Section 226 would extend those abuses to U.S. passports themselves.”
About the “Passport Killer” Section 226 of H.R. 5300
Buried in Section 226 of Mast’s “H.R. 5300, To guide the foreign policy of the United States, and for other purposes,” which is a part of the Foreign Relations Committee’s proposed larger State Department reorganization, would allow the Secretary of State to revoke passports not only from individuals convicted of crimes, but also from any citizen whom the Secretary personally “determines” has provided support to a designated group. Such unchecked power could be wielded to target political opponents, journalists, and human rights advocates critical of U.S. complicity in Israel’s war crimes and occupation.
Secretary Rubio has already misused similar powers: revoking Tufts doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk’s visa for a divestment op-ed, detaining Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, and detaining Mohsen Mahdawi, also at Columbia – cases where federal courts successfully intervened.
CAIR notes that this bill also replicates two decades of unconstitutional watchlist practices, now extended to passports. In 2024, CAIR secured a unanimous Supreme Court victory in FBI v. Fikre, which affirmed that Americans placed on the No-Fly List without due process have the right to challenge the government in court. Mast’s proposal seeks to roll back those protections by granting unilateral authority to the executive branch.
About Anti-Muslim, Anti-Palestinian Bill Sponsor Rep. Brian Mast
CAIR has repeatedly condemned Mast for his racist and genocidal rhetoric.
- In December 2024, CAIR denounced the GOP’s decision to elevate Mast to chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
- CAIR previously called on Mast to resign after his floor speech equating Palestinians to Nazis: “I would encourage the other side to not so lightly throw around the idea of innocent Palestinian civilians […] I don’t think we would so lightly throw around the term ‘innocent Nazi civilians.’”
- When asked by Code Pink activists about Palestinian babies killed by Israeli forces, Mast said: “These are not innocent Palestinian civilians across the world.”
- Confronted about famine in Gaza, Mast declared: “The half a million people starving to death are people that should go out there and put a government in place that doesn’t […] attack Israel on a daily basis.”
- He has openly celebrated the destruction of Palestinian homes: “There is more infrastructure that needs to be destroyed…and there will be more that is destroyed.”
Mast has also marched through Congress in the uniform of the Israeli military, a terrorist organization. He previously volunteered for that same foreign terrorist organization, even as it carries out a genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people.
CAIR will continue to monitor this legislation closely and will work with allies, lawmakers, and community members to ensure that unconstitutional attacks on free speech and civil liberties are defeated.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com