There are different ways for terrorists to get into the United States, but one easy way is by marrying a U.S. citizen. Human rights organizations constantly assail how severe U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) employees are in interviews with foreigners and U.S. citizens who get married. But there is a fairly significant risk of sheltering a potential deadly enemy without thorough scrutiny.

Last April, FBI agents detained a Syrian who organized an illegal deployment of terrorists from North African countries into the United States. Rafat Jamal Mawlawi, 54, a naturalized U.S. citizen who had even served in the U.S. Navy, was twice suspected of money laundering in the 1990s by law-enforcement agencies, but he came out unscathed both times.

At the time of his arrest in Memphis, Tennessee, a supply of weapons, a large amount of cash, two photographs showing him during the launching of an antitank missile somewhere in the Middle East, Islamist video materials, and 20 passports from Morocco, Syria, Iran and other Muslim countries were found in his house.

According to the FBI, the Syrian was able to arrange a minimum of a dozen fictitious marriages to U.S. citizens for his compatriots. Intelligence agencies acknowledge that the [compatriots’] trails were subsequently lost. The FBI made inquiries about several of these people in their former countries of residence. In the case of two Moroccan citizens, the FBI found that they were wanted by local intelligence agencies for participating in terrorist acts.

The findings of the Center for Immigration Studies, which were corroborated by the 9/11 Commission, show that out of 94 foreigners suspected of having connections to terrorist organizations (these people were in the United States from 1990 to 2004), 23 were U.S. permanent residents. Sixteen of them actually got their residency by marrying a U.S. citizen, and nine of these marriages were declared fictitious. Out of 94 terrorists, 20 were able to become U.S. citizens.

Why have I introduced these facts? The Washington Times published an article titled “ICE office ignores phony weddings,” which states that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), one of the security agencies of the Department of Homeland Security, did not display great persistence, to put it lightly, in investigating incidents related to sham marriages. USCIS provides ICE with information on potential shams.

“Due to our current capabilities and priorities,” admits ICE Special Agent Gus Meza in one of his e-mails to his superiors, “we do not investigate all leads we receive on fictitious marriages.”

In another e-mail, a USCIS employee informs his superiors that ICE agents do not investigate up to 70 percent of cases involving sham marriages. Attempts by The Washington Times to get a response on this scandalous situation from ICE employees netted no results.

However, Nick Smith, spokesman for ICE headquarters, did offer some explanations. He stated that at his agency, all USCIS material is required to be investigated, although he honestly admitted that investigations are only carried out in cases where there is weighty evidence linking the foreigner to terrorist activities, or if immigration agencies suspect a criminal network setting up fictitious marriages.

The threat that such a discriminatory approach poses to our security is clear. Not one of Rafat Mawlawi’s clients raised the suspicion of U.S. intelligence agencies. It was only after they arrived in the United States that the agencies learned of their past.

According to Congressman John Culberson (R-Tex), the reality is that USCIS or ICE does not investigate many cases concerning marriages between U.S. citizens and foreigners, despite the assurances of their spokesperson.

“The immigration service is now more concerned about how to process citizenship applications at a faster rate than about ensuring the national security of the United States,” Culberson emphasized.

Trying to defend the esprit de corps, USCIS spokesman Bill Strassberger noted in response to the Congressman’s accusations that his agency is doing its best.

“Even if ICE decides against initiating a criminal investigation related to fictitious marriages, USCIS completes its own administrative investigation,” Strassberger said.

But Culberson’s statement is not groundless. In an interview with The Washington Times, the lawmaker introduced facts that confirm his criticisms of, first and foremost, Strassberger’s agency. It turns out that managers of USCIS’s Houston bureau are allegedly rewarding employees who expeditiously investigate cases related to naturalization with the incentive of compensatory time off. If a worker is able to process citizenship applications at a rate of six per day during a quarter, he is rewarded with one day off. If he works at this rate for 10 days, he gets a whole week off. This incentive for Immigration Service employees, in some cases, works to the detriment of others.

Culberson does not explain how things are arranged at USCIS branches in other regions; however, one would suppose that they surely would not let their colleagues get ahead of them.

As editor of the “Hotline” column in Russian Bazaar, I frequently listen to the complaints of individual readers about the red tape involved with their citizenship applications. It’s good to note a trend to address this issue. On the other hand, it must be admitted that in the process of eliminating some shortcomings in the immigration procedures, the immigration and security agencies of the Department of Homeland Security have created inefficiencies in an extremely critical area. Culberson is 100 percent correct from the viewpoint of ensuring the security of the United States.

We must not forget the ancient wisdom that says: A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.