Gov. Kate Brown: OR will continue to accept refugees

As conservative governors (and presidential hopefuls) around the country sound off about what kind of worldwide refugees they believe the USA should accept, the nation’s first openly LGBT governor has a much different tactic.

Brown countered by noting that state law enforcement agencies have active investigations into suspected radicals and that information about incoming Syrian refugees could help maintain their awareness about potential radicalization.

In a call with senior Obama administration officials Tuesday evening, several governors demanded they be given access to information about Syrian refugees about to be resettled by the federal government in their states.

In a Facebook post Tuesday, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, who is bisexual, stressed that her state will continue to offer refuge to the world’s exhausted, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to breathe free.

Clearly, OR will continue to accept refugees. An immigration expert says states have no legal authority to reject refugees. It was clear that the administration has less desire to work with governors than to tell them they have no choice but to comply. Gov. Brown spoke about it in person on Wednesday.

But a few Oregonians say they’re anxious that accepting refugees in the state could compromise their safety.

Governors in at least 12 states have said they will welcome refugees, including Washington and California.

A Syrian refugee child sleeps in his father’s arms while waiting at a resting point to board a bus, after arriving on a dinghy from the Turkish coast.

However, he wants the federal government to share more information with state officials, said the aide, Nancy McFadden.

McFadden added, “We need to be a check on you, basically”.