“I listened to the governor’s concerns regarding security and prayerfully considered his request that we defer from welcoming them until Congress had approved new legislation regarding immigrants and refugees”, Tobin said, before informing Pence that the church would still resettle the family, as they have others for 40 years, because the “life-saving tradition” is “an essential part of our identity as Catholic Christians”.
Advertisement
“The (Texas) Commission has failed to show by competent evidence that any terrorists actually have infiltrated the refugee program, much less that these particular refugees are terrorists intent on causing harm”, U.S District Judge David Godbey said in his decision.
Archbishop Joseph Tobin says the family arrived safely in Indianapolis Monday night.
Note, the Syrian family in question has already undergone two years of screening and security checks, and also already has family members living in Indianapolis.
The results of this case could determine whether the governors of more than 30 states will be able to go through with plans to bar the local resettlement of Syrian refugees.
The White House maintains that states do not have the right to block refugees’ federal funding. “I recognize Catholic Charities raised private dollars, but I have it in my power to suspend this program and suspend the resources”.
None of the terrorists who killed 130 people in Paris have been identified as Syrians, though one had apparently stolen the passport of a Syrian migrant.
Nonprofit organizations typically fund the initial resettlement, but the state receives money from the federal government for employment training, English language classes and other services for the families in the weeks, months and years that follow. Abbott told the Houston Chronicle after Paxton’s announcement that he still opposed accepting any Syrian refugees because “the vetting process and procedures are inadequate”.
Federal officials and refugee agencies have ignored the governors’ calls to halt resettlement, saying states are denying a safe haven to families displaced by war and that a state’s role in resettlement does not include the authority to block them.
Federal guidelines require that states provide assistance to refugees, without regards to nationality – a fact that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reminded governors of in a letter sent last month. But the overall refugee flow into the USA from the Syrian diaspora is still small. Ted Cruz of Texas announced on Tuesday that he will propose a bill that would allow governors to ban Syrian refugees from entering their states.
As state officials fought the case, a Syrian family of six arrived to join relatives in the Dallas area Monday, according to Lucy Carrigan, a spokeswoman for the International Rescue Committee, the refugee group sued by the state.
President and CEO of Refugee Services of Texas confirmed the refugees’ arrival.
Advertisement
“I will continue to do everything that I can to ensure that refugees from Syria who could pose a danger to the people of the state of Texas will not be allowed to relocate into the state of Texas”, Abbott said.
