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Fact check: Joe Sestak on Pat Toomey and Syrian refugees
December 23, 2015
By Cindy Kehler
Did Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) say that the federal government should not admit Syrian refugees to the United States unless “we know with certainty that the person is a Christian”?
In a blog post dated Nov. 20, 2015, and a news article dated Dec. 8, 2015, one of Toomey’s 2016 Democratic challengers, Joe Sestak, claimed that he did. But we find that Sestak’s statement mischaracterizes what Toomey said.
Background
Pat Toomey is a first-term Republican senator from Pennsylvania seeking re-election in 2016. Former House representative and Navy admiral Joe Sestak is seeking the Democratic nomination to run for the Senate in 2016. In a blog post dated Nov. 20, 2015, Sestak said,
| “ | I know people are concerned about terrorists and the security of America, but I was stunned to hear Senator Pat Toomey say we should refuse entry to Syrian refugees unless "we know with certainty that the person is a Christian."[1][2] | ” |
In a news article of Dec. 8, 2015, responding to Donald Trump’s call to prohibit Muslims from entering the United States, Sestak repeated his remark:
| “ | As I said weeks ago when Pat Toomey said we should refuse entry to Syrian refugees unless "we know with certainty that the person is a Christian," condemning those of another faith purely on the basis of their faith, undermines the founding principles I fought to protect for 31 years in the U.S. Navy.[3][2] | ” |
Toomey’s statements in context
A spokesperson for Sestak’s campaign confirmed via email that Sestak’s source for Toomey’s remarks about Syrian refugees is a Nov. 18 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The full passage containing Toomey’s quote is as follows:
| “ | [Toomey] said the refugee program should be suspended until the administration finds a better way to investigate them.
“I’m not comfortable admitting large numbers of people that we can’t check,” Mr. Toomey said. He said it might be appropriate to relax screening for small children, the elderly or for Christians. “If we know with certainty that the person is a Christian, then I think we can be pretty clear that they’re not a jihadist. I’m not aware of any Christians that are joining ISIS,” he said. “But that by itself is not adequate. We would want to know whether they have a criminal background or whether they would have other problems in their background” [emphasis added].[4][2] |
” |
When Toomey’s statements are seen in context, it appears that he actually said three things: first, that we should suspend admission of all refugees until stronger screening is implemented; second, that the old, very young or Christians might qualify for relaxed screening; and third, that certainty that a person is a Christian is good evidence that the person is not a jihadist, but that more screening is still needed.
Sestak states that Toomey says all Syrian refugees should be refused admission unless it is clear they are Christian—that Christianity alone would be a sufficient condition for admission. But in the Post-Gazette’s account, Toomey is described as saying all refugees should be refused admission until further, stronger screening measures are implemented. Then the paper describes Toomey as saying screening perhaps could be relaxed for refugees who are elderly, small children or Christian.[4]
So in Toomey’s view, there are other criteria that might allow for relaxed screening besides Christianity—either very young or very old age. The direct quote then states that Christianity alone, while it might make it “pretty clear that they’re not a jihadist,” would not be sufficient for admission. Toomey says that even if screeners have certainty that a person is a Christian, a more extensive background check is still required. Finally, it appears the “relaxed” screening would be relaxed down from the more strenuous screening that Toomey asserts is not even in use yet. He first says we need more strenuous screening and then says perhaps screening might be “relaxed”—but not dismissed—for refugees who meet certain criteria, namely old or young age or Christianity.
Reached for comment, the Toomey campaign said via email, “Joe Sestak is grotesquely distorting what Sen. Toomey actually said.”
Conclusion
Joe Sestak has tried to make the case that Pat Toomey is saying refugees from Syria should not be admitted to the United States unless they are Christian. We find this to be a mischaracterization of what Toomey said. It’s clear from Toomey’s own contemporaneous news release that he favors the suspension of admission of Syrian refugees to the U.S. until stronger vetting procedures can be established.[5] But that is not the same as saying he would bar all Syrian refugees unless they are Christian. Rather, Toomey has said he first favors stronger vetting procedures followed by possible relaxation of those procedures if a refugee is elderly, a young child or “[i]f we know with certainty that the person is a Christian, then I think we can be pretty clear that they’re not a jihadist…[b]ut that by itself is not adequate.” Sestak has taken Toomey’s words and added his own to imply that Toomey believes Christianity is a sufficient condition for admission, while Toomey actually said that Christianity might be one among several conditions for relaxed screening—but not automatic admission—of refugees.
Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to revaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about fact-checking, click here.
Sources and Notes
- ↑ [1] Chester County Democratic Committee, "Have you no sense of decency, Sir?" November 20, 2015]
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ PennLive, "'Donald Trump is a jagoff' and other comments from Pa.'s U.S. Senate hopefuls," December 8, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Pa. senators clash on vetting process for refugees," November 18, 2015
- ↑ Pat Toomey, "Senator Toomey: Admission of Syrian Refugees into U.S. Should Be Suspended," November 16, 2015
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