Michigan’s Republican governor, who has bucked many party leaders for welcoming Syrian refugees, is putting efforts on hold following the deadly attacks in Paris. In a letter to Obama, the Republican also urged scrapping federal plans to accept more Syrian refugees into the country as a whole.
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The committee for refugees and immigration says the Refugee Act of 1980 prevents governors from legally blocking refugees from settling in their communities. A few published reports say a passport found at the site of one of the attacks has been linked to a man who came into Greece from Syria as a refugee.
Ethan Miller/Getty Images Ben Carson said Obama’s refugee plan is a “huge mistake”.
In a letter sent Monday to President Barack Obama, Deal also called upon the federal government to place a moratorium on the government’s resettlement program.
Journalist Deanna Othman criticised Republicans who called for resettlement only for Christian refugees.
Wolf, a Democrat, said Monday that the federal government believes it can handle an additional 10,000 refugees that the White House said in September that it would accept from Syria.
“Neither you nor any federal official can guarantee that Syrian refugees will not be part of any terroristic activity”, Abbott wrote. “Governors who reject those fleeing war and persecution abandon our ideals and instead project our fears to the world”.
The State Department said the administration would stand by its plan, reiterating that the refugees would be subject to stringent security checks, and Obama said that the terrorism problem should not be equated with the refugee crisis.
Several influential Republican House and Senate leaders are pushing, too, to block Syrian refugee resettlement.
As of July 31, Minnesota had accepted seven Syrian refugees in the previous two years. Any assistance provided to refugees and immigrants is carried out under government contracts, and the vetting of newcomers is always completed by government agencies long before church agencies become involved. Michigan’s “first priority is protecting the safety of our residents”, he said. “The governors who are taking those actions are stomping on the qualities that make America great”, commented Shumlin. Scott says his state has tried to get answers for nine months on the screening process for refugees who come to the US.
Back in October, Cruz said allowing Syrian refugees into the US would be “nothing short of insane”, warning that Islamic State terrorists could be among those entering the country.
Paul warned Saturday that the USA and Europe “have to be very careful about bringing refugees to our country that might attack us”. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley – said the United States should admit far more than the 10,000 Syrians to which Obama has committed, but only with proper screening.
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Another area governor, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker joined a growing number of mostly Republican governors saying they don’t want the refugees yet. “We can not sustain the numbers of migrants that are flowing into Europe”. “Because there’s no way to background check someone that’s coming from Syria”.
