Senator Tim Kaine on Syria and the Paris Attacks

These questions originally appeared on Quora: The best answer to any question.

Answers by Tim Kaine, United States Senator from Virginia, on Quora:

Q: Should the U.S. accept Syrian refugees?

Yes, absolutely. This is the worst humanitarian crisis since WWII. Of course we must have the toughest screening process possible, but I worry that calls to end or pause our refugee resettlement program are misguided. Refugees are currently subject to the absolute highest level of security checks of any category of traveler coming to the U.S., with special criteria in place for those coming from Syria on top of the normal procedures. Getting admitted as a refugee generally takes more than a year and a half and involves signoff from numerous agencies including the National Counterterrorism Center, the CIA, the FBI, Homeland Security, the State Department and the Department of Defense. It's not easy to come into our country as a refugee, at all. But the notion of 'no Syrian can ever come here' is antithetical to our values - especially when the innocent civilians and families seeking refuge in our country are fleeing the very violence and terror we saw in France and Lebanon that they experience every day in Syria.

Q: Why did the Paris attacks happen?

As the global military campaign against ISIL intensifies, the more likely we will see attempts by them to carry out attacks outside the Middle East to draw attention away from their tactical losses on the battlefields of Iraq and Syria.

Something I think the United States, France and all nations committed to fighting ISIL should take away from last week's events is the importance of working together to defeat this adversary. The more we communicate with each other and coordinate our strategies, the more successful we will be in countering ISIL activity in the Middle East. To thwart attacks that may occur away from the battlefield, such as Paris, I believe improving the way we share intelligence is critical.

• Terrorism: What is our current strategy for fighting ISIS? Is the strategy working?
• Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS): Why is Congress afraid to vote on the ISIL war?
• U.S. Senate: How does being a Governor compare to being a U.S. Senator?