New Jersey leaders are demanding an apology from the Biden Administration after Prospect Park mayor Mohamed Khairullah the longest serving Muslim mayor in the state says he was blocked by the Secret Service from attending a White House celebration on Monday marking the belated end of Ramadan Khairullah says he was personally invited to attend but told just hours before the event that his security clearance was denied with no explanation the syrian-born mayor believes he's been on an FBI Terror watch list since 2019 around the same time he began experiencing aggressive searches and questioning when traveling he's calling on the Biden Administration to disband the list of what he calls a racist policy Governor Murphy says his office reached out to the White House but hasn't gotten any answers mayor karula is a close friend of the governor and was at an Eid celebration at drum flackett on Saturday some of New Jersey's top professional leaders Senators Menendez and Booker along with Congressman pasquerel sent a sharply worded letter to the Secret Service this week demanding an explanation so far the White House has punted when questioned about the incident this is under the purview of the Secret Service what I will say more broadly is that uh and I can say this I was in the room the president was very proud to welcome nearly 400 Muslim Americans to the White House to celebrate Eid yesterday it was a meaningful event an opportunity to celebrate along Muslim leaders from across the country who were here as I said nearly 400 this particular situation is under the purview of secret service and so I will leave it to them to to speak to directly and Prospect Park mayor Mohammed Khairullah joins me now mayor it's good to see you let me just ask you first why do you think you were turned away from this event which you were invited to hello Brianna thank you very much um I think it became apparent after uh speaking to the Council on American Islamic relations that I have been placed on some type of watch list in 2019 which explains my traveling difficulties um uh they have provided me a redacted copy with my name and date of birth on it so it's some type of Dragnet operation uh the question now is why did I get on that list and how and how do I clear my name and this is not a question for me only this is a question for 1.5 million other people who are on this list the list you're referring to of course is this secret FBI terrorist watch list Which documents were released leaked really showing some of those names do you then believe that this is an issue of racial profiling absolutely I mean the majority of the names on the list are Arabs and and Muslims and the the troubling part here is there is no due process uh I it does make me feel like a criminal I I might considered a threat to to be placed on a list that's called a terrorist watch list uh that is absolutely crazy so um you know I think the FBI the Secret Service the these federal agencies that use this list um have a lot to answer and I think um our president is the only person who has the power now to disband this list or uh revamp it in a way that it doesn't trap innocent people and destroys their lives well yeah I mean describe for us what that has been like um in terms of as you said traveling difficulties um and other times when you feel you've been pinpointed yeah I mean I could go back to 2019 when we traveled to Istanbul uh it caused us um missing flight connections it cost me six thousand dollars to buy new flight uh tickets to to come back to to the United States and somehow as I was the last person to leave the plane with my family agents were at the gate saying you've been selected randomly uh I mean I can get more hilarious than this and then when I'm being interviewed by an agent I get a flat out question and I quote did you meet with any terrorists what am I supposed to answer uh it's it's ridiculous um and and then when I come back from Canada driving uh I get detained in a glass room where my four-year-old daughter is asking me why I can't get to you I was acting in front of my family in front of people uh it's humiliating and we're our old answers at this point by our government yeah what Beyond answers and an apology are you looking for from the Biden Administration I I think if anything there needs to be reformed to that list look we're not telling the federal agencies not to protect our Nations not to do their jobs when I went into Syria I understood 100 that I had to be questioned sure because certainly there are National Security advisors who would say you know there are reasons for having that list absolutely but it's not a smart list here's the thing I've met presidents I've met High elected officials I've met presidents of other countries and I've interacted with the with the Secret Service plenty of times but that's when they met me as a person as Muhammad karula but when they meet me as that number that name that date of birth through their Dragnet operation they don't know me for who I really am they don't question how I got on this list and why I got on this list then we have a problem somebody put me on that list for the sake of transparency for the sake of our principles as a nation we're owed answers why how give me a give me an opportunity to defend myself mayor I wonder what you would say to folks who have been through similar situations you are obviously someone you've served for 17 years for the borough there you are politically very well connected and so you have those voices speaking out on your behalf what would you say for folks who have been through this who aren't in that position well I could say to them uh yesterday's press conference with a bunch of organizations I hope this would be the start for another push to disband or revamp the operation of that list uh don't lose hope continue to to push continue to push your federally elected officials um let's make it a an issue an upcoming presidential election uh people should not be treated that way under our constitution our constitution protects our rights and what's going on with this list is a violation of our rights Prospect Park mayor Muhammed Khairullah thank you so much for coming on to talk about this thank you