Syrian Refugees Have Been Resettled In 36 States, Most In CA,TX, MI

Texas Health Commissioner Chris Traylor sent a letter the International Rescue Committee’s Dallas office saying the state could take legal action if Governor Greg Abbott’s directive to keep out Syrian refugees is not followed.

“As part of our mission and mandate from the U.S. Federal government, we will continue to resettle refugees in Texas and other states”, a spokeswoman for the International Rescue Committee said in response to a Reuters email. Meanwhile, those same charities have received word from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement that states – such as Texas – lack the legal authority to deny refugees or to interfere with the work of aid societies helping the refugees.

Since the Paris terror attacks on November 13, the State Department has admitted 132 Syrian refugees into the United States, and all 132 are Sunni Muslims.

One family is expected to join relatives in Richardson within days.

The bipartisan group of former officials said they opposed the legislation, arguing that the vetting of refugees is robust and thorough.

The 66 leaders who signed Monday’s memo from the Conservative Action Project believe now “there is no possible way to verify the identity and credibility of Syrian refugees” that creates a “grave national security threat” to the United States. And some opponents of President Barack Obama’s effort to resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees in this country view the must-pass funding measure as the ideal vehicle to thwart the administration’s plan.

With issues like funding for Planned Parenthood and Medicaid expansion, the state government and the federal government clearly have policy differences, Rosenthal says. However, some resettlement agencies have diverted refugees from the states. “USCIRF also calls on the United States to prioritize the resettlement of Syrian refugees based on their vulnerability”.

The letter, signed Robert Carey the director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, said that his agency is committed “to ensuring that all refugees receive the assistance and services vital to achieving their potential in the United States and becoming self-sufficient, integrated members of our communities”.

“We must be able to verify that any individual seeking any immigration status does not pose a threat to this nation”, says to the memo.

Corcoran said the governors need to press for their rights to information, even if it means going to court.

Faez, a Syrian refugee who speaks some English, told the Star-Telegram that relatives now in Jordan are scheduled to arrive in Texas this week.

Already, the agency has helped eight Syrian refugees find new homes in Texas, and the director of the agency said in a statement that they have no intentions of stopping.

According to data from the State Department’s Refugee Processing Center the top three destinations for Syrian refugees since the beginning of the conflict are California, Texas, and MI.

However, to reassure the governors, McDonough said he proposes to establish a process for them to obtain additional information tailored to their states about the refugees who are resettled during the prior month and the fiscal year to date.