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Two National Guard soldiers were ambushed and shot just blocks from the White House in a chilling reminder that our streets and our capital are not immune from violence. Authorities say the attack left one member dead and another critically wounded, and the incident has been treated as a possible act of terrorism by federal investigators.
The suspect has been identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who arrived in the United States in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome and later sought asylum — a journey that should have triggered endless scrutiny but apparently did not. Reports indicate Lakanwal had prior paramilitary ties in Afghanistan and has been the subject of counterterrorism interest, raising hard questions about how someone with that history slipped through our immigration safety net.
President Trump moved quickly to answer the outrage with decisive policy changes, ordering more guards into the city and pausing parts of the asylum pipeline while his administration rethinks admission standards. Those steps are precisely the kind of common-sense security-first moves this country needs when lives are on the line and bureaucratic complacency has proven deadly.
Voices from the conservative national security community have been blunt: extreme vetting is not a slogan but a necessity if we are to prevent hostile actors from exploiting humanitarian programs. Jim Hanson of the Middle East Forum has argued publicly that what passes for vetting today is woefully inadequate and that tougher screening standards must return to protect American citizens and our servicemen and women.
Let’s be clear — this is not the time for calls to coddle political correctness or to pretend one isolated act shouldn’t drive policy that would keep Americans safe. When our soldiers are shot on American soil, the conversation about who we admit and how we screen them becomes urgent, not optional, and political theater must give way to real security reforms.
Washington’s elite often treats homeland security like a checkbox, but families bury their loved ones in the real world; they deserve a system that prioritizes safety over optics. The president’s pivot toward strict vetting and pause-on-admissions is a measured response to a preventable tragedy, and it represents the kind of leadership that puts country before ideology.
We should honor the bravery of the National Guard who defended their comrades and demand accountability from the agencies whose failures allowed this threat to reach our streets. If this nation is to remain a safe and sovereign place, we must insist on rigorous vetting, enforceable deportations for proven threats, and a complete overhaul of the policies that handcuff our law enforcement and invite unnecessary risk.
