Eighty-two-year-old conservative Christian MP the Reverend Fred Nile has been called many things in his time in public life, but last week was the first time he was deemed a threat to international security.
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Mr Nile MLC, the longest-serving member of the NSW Parliament, says both he and his wife, Silvana Nero, were last week denied entry to the United States because they were told they presented an unspecified security risk.
Mr Nile said he had booked travel to the US after being invited to attend the inauguration of President Donald Trump on January 20.
"No explanations or reasons were given," said Mr Nile, the founder of the Christian Democratic Party.
"The only suspicion I have is that someone in the Obama machine said, 'We're not going to help this guy.' That's my gut feeling, but then again who would bother about me?"
Mr Nile said he was baffled by the ruling.
He noted that he made several trips to the US between 1966 and 2015 and is a member of an American-Australian parliamentary friendship group.
There are many reasons visitors can be denied entry to the US, including having ties to criminal or terrorist organisations.
In 2015, Mr Nile called for the public to donate to the Assyrian Christian Militia, a group devoted to fighting ISIS in northern Iraq after meeting members of the group in Sydney. He denied that call violated prohibitions against Australians to fight or provide funding to either side of the armed conflict in Syria or Iraq.
"They're seeking to defend their towns and villages; they need our prayers and support," he said in a 2015 interview with 6PR a radio station owned by Fairfax Media.
"A Christian militia is not a terrorist organisation. It's a defensive [outfit]. They're Christians not Muslim terrorists."
He said he was invited to Mr Trump's inauguration after striking up an email relationship with the new leader of the free world.
"Weeks and weeks ago I had an email from Mr Trump," he said.
"I got quite carried away. I sent back a detailed email giving him my friendly advice.
"[I said] he ought to be very careful selecting his cabinet ... as he had no experience in politics or defence.
"That [advice] was gratefully received."
Australians can usually enter the US after filling in a request under a visa waiver program but may be told to make applications for a full visa, as Mr Nile was.
Under new regulations, travellers who have visited Iran, Iraq, Syria and Sudan are also ineligible for entry under the visa waiver program and must be present for an interview.
But Mr Nile said his only recent trip to the Middle East had been a tour of Israel.
A spokesman for the US consulate said it could not comment on any individual visa cases, citing reasons of privacy.
"We have no comment on his statement," the spokesman said.
