Tag: Refugees

Categories
Politics

Lawsuit Filed Against Refugee Refusing Governor

I can only imagine that there will be a lot more law suits of this sort, since Republican governors nationwide are blatantly violating the Constitution for their own dumb brand of politics.

A lawsuit challenging the Indiana governor’s decision to stop state agencies from helping resettle Syrian refugees alleges that the action wrongly targets the refugees based on nationality, and violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed the federal lawsuit Monday night on behalf of Indianapolis-based nonprofit organization Exodus Refugee Immigration. It accuses Gov. Mike Pence of violating the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, as well as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, by accepting refugees to Indiana from other countries — but not from Syria.

The first-term Republican governor objected to plans for refugees to arrive in Indiana following the recent deadly attacks in Paris. Five days after the Nov. 13 attacks, a family that had fled war-torn Syria was diverted from Indianapolis to Connecticut when Pence ordered state agencies to halt resettlement activities.

Categories
Domestic Policies Foreign Policies Immigration Reform News Politics Syria

Refugees From Reality

Leave it to the GOP (and some uninformed Democrats) to make a frightening situation something to panic over. The Paris attacks were terrible. The threat of more terrorist attacks on Europe is very real. But if you want to stop terrorists from coming into the United States, tampering with the refugee system is exactly the wrong place to start.

The United States has accepted about 70,00 refugees into this country since 2009.  And there’s a lengthy process. One-third of them were from countries that, on first glance, might supply potential terrorists. How many of these refugees turned out to be terrorists or involved in potential terrorist plots? None.  Further, if ISIS or any other group wanted to send potential terrorists to the United States, why would they choose a process that is thoroughly vetted and could take up to two years? It makes no sense. Which is why, I’m sure, the Republicans are pursuing legislation that would affect the refugee program.

It would be far easier for a potential bomber to come in as a tourist. Or as a worker who doesn’t need a visa. Or as a student.  But of course, no politician wants to shut down tourism or interfere with students who want to come to the U.S. to study or with someone who will do a job that an American won’t or can’t (including high tech jobs that require math, which seems to be another GOP weakness). That would be an economic catastrophe. So instead, they’re going after the one program that vets all applicants over a specified period of time as their target.

Even better, Donald Trump leads the GOP with a policy of building a very high wall on the Mexican border to stop the hordes who are coming to the United States. The truth is that more people are leaving the US for Mexico than are trying to come to this country.  The people who really want to come in, the drug smugglers, have built sophisticated tunnels. A wall won’t stop them.

President Obama is exactly right to veto any legislation that is built on fear, xenophobia and ignorance, which the right seems to think will win it an election next year. Hillary Clinton has proposed a specific, pragmatic policy for dealing with ISIS that goes beyond mere rhetoric and fearful slogans. It’s a policy that even conservatives view as thoughtful and worth considering.

Fear has been the coin of the realm for the Republican Party since 2001. They’ve run on a platform that says only they can keep us safe and I’m sure they’ll plug that exhausted line until November. What they need is a detailed plan for actually fighting ISIS both militarily and diplomatically with our allies. It will take thought and political will rather than blame. So far, I haven’t heard anything that gives me confidence in their ability to confront the threat.

For more, go to www.facebook.com/WhereDemocracyLives or Twitter @rigrundfest

Categories
New Jersey Politics Syria

Chris Christie – No Refugees in New Jersey, Especially “Orphans under 5 years old”

Tough-talking Chris Christie showed his breaking point Monday when he interviewed by phone with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, and expressed his concern for Syrian refugees coming to his state. And as far as Christie goes, he’s not having any of these people in New Jersey, not even “orphans under 5!”

“I do not trust this administration to effectively vet the people who are proposed to be coming in in order to protect the safety and security of the American people, so I would not permit them in,” Christie said.

Hewitt then asked, “What if they were orphans under the age of 5?”

“You know, Hugh, we can come up with 18 different scenarios. The fact is that we need appropriate vetting, and I don’t think orphans under 5 should be admitted into the United States at this point. You know, they have no family here. How are we going to care for these folks?” Christie said. “The fact is, you can come up with a number of different scenarios, Hugh, but in the end, I don’t trust this administration to effectively vet the people that they’re asking us to take in. We need to put the safety and security of the American people first.”

The governors of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Texas, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Massachusetts have gone further as to move formally to block refugees from relocating into their states – at least for now.

It should be noted that governors cannot turn people away from their state. They simply cannot say who can and cannot come in.

Categories
Politics

Fox’s Shep Smith Slams “Extremest” Governors Refusing Refugees – Video

I’ve said this about Fox’s Shep Smith before, that he is working on the wrong network. Now, there are times when Shep toes the line and push the Republican talking points, then there are times when he goes out on a limb all by himself and, yes, speak the truth!

Since the terrorist attacks in Paris and the revelation that one of the attackers made their way into France as a refugee, there have been much talk, primarily among Republican presidential candidates and some governors, that America should turn away any and all refugees from Syria. And it was totally expected that the hosts at Fox News will mindlessly push that talking-point, but there goes Shep again, stepping out on another limb.

“In the face of terror, will we panic, or be calm and deliberative in approach? Confronted with those who want to change our way of life, will we abandon our freedoms and the rights granted to us by the Creator? Or will we welcome huddle masses yearning to breathe free?”

Smith of course is talking about the Republican presidential candidates and the 15 or so governors, primarily Republican governors, promising to reject any refugee sent to their state. Shep continued;

“Our shining city on a hill is vulnerable. We’ve always known that. If we change it to accommodate the savages, have they won? And what then would be left to protect? We profess to stand as an example for all the world. Our unique experiment in freedom, tolerance, openness, and equality is our gift to societies and peoples everywhere. Come, join us. Enjoy a chance at the American dream. Today, we mourn, but we cannot allow ourselves to become like those who want to destroy us. We cannot resort to the tactics of the barbarians. We must fight for what we believe in and who we are, guard our freedoms faithfully for the generations to follow. And we must not let the rhetoric of potential and political extremists among us lead us to self-destruction. When there’s panic, we show resolve. When there’s calm for extremism, we resist. We are America. We must lead.”

Video

Exit mobile version