cons consular would ask how many times they met before. but it gets back to the question of how do we determine what questions could we ask? what things can we look at that shows a person s intention to do harm when they get to our shores? you served, as you knowledged, as a clandestine officer in the cia in the middle east. you served for about nine years before becoming a united states congressman. does the u.s. have the ability right now, based on everything you know, to infiltrate isis at a high level in clandestine ways to get intelligence, track individuals who pose a threat? they can. they should be. and we need to be doing more. you know, if i was the president, i would call up the director of the cia and say you have 45 days to double the amount of human intelligence that s coming out of syria. going after the plans and intentions of isis and the leadership of isis is a key collection gap that we they d to be collecting more information on. and this is how we re going to