National security experts back settling Syrian refugees

“We are pleased to see the federal government finally beginning to understand that states like OH want more regular information about refugees being resettled in our state”, said Kasich press secretary Joe Andrews.

We don’t know whether Islamic State or other terrorist organizations are infiltrating refugees to gain entry to Europe or the United States.

The U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement program operates in conjunction with the departments of Homeland Security, State and Health and Human Services.

The White House is proposing several steps to address concerns raised by more than half the nation’s governors, including North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory, over the adequacy of screening refugees resettled in the U.S.

The New York-based International Rescue Committee said in a Monday letter to Texas health and human services chief Chris Traylor that its Dallas affiliate would continue to provide resettlement assistance to all refugees “who have been admitted lawfully to the United States”.

Federal officials told state leaders last week they do not have legal authority to refuse Syrian refugees. Texas has accepted roughly 200 of them, and IRC has been involved with resettling two families – both couples with young children. Federal courts – including the U.S. Supreme Court – have said immigration and admission of noncitizens to the United States is a federal responsibility and one managed wholly by the federal government. The top receiving states this fiscal year has been California (53), Arizona (42), Pennsylvania (40), Kentucky (38), OH (37), Texas (35), Florida (31), and MI (30).

“There is some discussion right now about putting my Syrian refugee bill onto the omnibus bill”, McCaul said in an interview after votes Monday night.

Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, sent a letter with at least 73 Republican signatures calling on House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, and House Appropriations Committee Chair Hal Rogers, R-Kentucky, to halt funding for refugee resettlement in the spending bill unless the White House establishes stricter vetting procedures for refugees. By contrast, 636 Iraqi refugees and 498 Somali refugees have resettled in OR in that same period, according to data from the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

Some 4,500 refugees land in Texas annually, and the United States has pledged to add 10,000 Syrians over the next year. Representatives from the NGOs greet refugees at the airport, help them find safe and affordable housing and work, and provide them with food and clothing, among other services.

Obama’s comments on the thoroughness of the vetting process is opposite of his own Federal Bureau of Investigation director, James Comey, who testified before Congress in October saying it was impossible to properly vet the Syrian refugees because his agency has no data to cross-check the identities and backgrounds on the vast majority of them.

The agencies work as an arm of the federal government but are shielded from the requirements of the federal Freedom of Information Act. States that defy the law could face suspension or termination of their refugee resettlement programs, according to a letter signed by Robert Carey, director of the office.