Posts

First Syrian Refugees Arrive on U.S. Soil: Where Is Congress?

/5 Comments/in , /by

Imagine a Republican leadership that actually harnessed public attention against some of Obama’s most unpopular policies, especially as it relates to national security?

The Associated Press is reporting today that under a new expedited program to speed up resettlement, families will begin coming to the U.S. this week from Jordan. The first Syrian family to be resettled to the U.S. under its speeded-up “surge operation” departed to the United States Wednesday from the Jordanian capital, Amman:

A resettlement surge center opened in Amman in February to meet President Barack Obama’s target of resettling 10,000 Syrians to the United States by Sep. 30. Every day, the center interviews some 600 Syrian refugees.

The temporary processing center for the surge operation will run until April 28, U.S. Ambassador to Jordan Alice Wells said. She travelled to the airport to greet the family before their departure.

The regional refugee coordinator at the U.S. embassy in Amman, Gina Kassem, said that while the 10,000 target applies to Syrian refugees living around the world, the majority will be resettled from Jordan.

Despite all of the national security problems and challenges with assimilation, there is not even a peep from Congressional Republicans. The media will attempt to play on people’s emotions and portray this as some great humanitarian gesture, but the reality is that moving refugees to the U.S. costs 12 times more than resettling them in the region, which means we could resettle thousands more if we restructured the goals of the program. But that would deny the parasitic refugee resettlement groups their taxpayer funded mandate to transform America, so they dogmatically oppose options other than domestic resettlement.

The administration will also try to demonstrate that these people are harmless and are not members of ISIS. The problem, as we’ve observed in the past, is that most people don’t come with a membership card linking them to a formal terror group. The real question is how many of them are fervent adherents to Sharia, which is fundamentally at odds with our democratic society. Just today, a Syrian refugee was arrested in Germany for war crimes and torture he committed in Syria but was unknown until now.

Moreover, as we’ve see here and in Europe, many of the religious parents will live peacefully but their strict adherence to Sharia cultivates the atmosphere where their kids become militarized. There is no way of vetting the future of these children and past history, especially the experience with many Somali refugees, dictates that we must not gamble our security.

This is not hard to communicate to the American people. According to a poll conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, 84% of Americans believe immigration from the Middle East is very or somewhat dangerous. These sentiments are shared by 75% of Democrats, 80% of Blacks, and 90% of Hispanics. The poll also found that just 25% of Americans and 38% of Democrats want to bring in Syrian refugees.

Rather than focus on the Puerto Rican bailout or jailbreak legislation, Republicans should immediately put a moratorium on refugees from countries saturated with Islamists. (For more from the author of “First Syrian Refugees Arrive on U.S. Soil: Where Is Congress?” please click HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Here’s How Many Christian Syrian Refugees the United States Has Admitted

/2 Comments/in , /by

According to a report by CNSNews, the United States has approved the resettlement of 483 Syrian refugees since the terrorist attacks in Paris last November, and only one is a Christian.

The lone Christian constitutes 0.2 percent of all of the Syrian refugees approved for resettlement in the United States since Nov. 13, 2015 . . .

The overwhelming majority — 470 — of the refugees Sunnis, three are Shi’ites and nine were identified as “Moslem.”

A single refugee was identified as a member of the Greek Orthodox Church . . .

Of all of the refugees admitted since the beginning of fiscal year 2016 in October, the United States has admitted 774 of a planned 10,000 Syrian refugees. Of those 774 refugees, six are Christian. In addition to the lone member of the Greek Orthodox Church, three were identified as Catholic, one as “Orthodox” and one simply as “Christian.” (Read more from “Here’s How Many Christian Syrian Refugees the United States Has Admitted” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Cruz: We Will Accept Refugees as Long As… [+video]

/2 Comments/in , /by

“If I’m elected president, we will not let in refugees from countries controlled by ISIS or Al Qaida,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said at Thursday’s night’s debate in South Carolina.

Although Cruz was the first candidate to be asked about refugees, all of the candidates weighed in, and their responses are included below.

Cruz said he understands why Donald Trump called for a ban on all Muslim immigrants “until we can figure out what’s going on,” as Trump put it.

“You know, I understand why Donald made the comments he did, and I understand why Americans are feeling frustrated and scared and angry when we have a president who refuses to acknowledge the threat we face and even worse, who acts as an apologist for radical Islamic terrorism” . . .

“If I’m elected president, we will not let in refugees from countries controlled by ISIS or Al Qaida. When it comes to ISIS, we will not weaken them, we will not degrade them, we will utterly and completely destroy ISIS,” Cruz concluded. (Read more from “Cruz: We Will Accept Refugees as Long As…” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

The Coming Bipartisan Betrayal on Middle East Refugees and Visas

/2 Comments/in , /by

Are you ready for the GOP betrayal to end all betrayals?

Republicans in Congress are prepared to take the positive energy from the public demanding reform of immigration from the Middle East and deflect it into a shiny object issue that literally changes nothing – all while granting Democrats a much needed loin-cloth to cover their appalling open borders policies.

According to recent polling data, 84% of Americans believe immigration from the Middle East is “very or somewhat dangerous” and just 25% of Americans and 38% of Democrats want to bring in Syrian refugees. Yet, Republicans have been doing everything in their power to ignore the issue of immigration and visas form the Middle East. Now they plan to fund every penny of the corrupt, lawless, and dangerous refugee program in the upcoming budget bill.

What is their plan to deflect public outrage?

They plan to focus on visas from Europe instead of the Middle East and Syria and do it in such a vacuous and dishonest fashion that even Pelosi and Obama are championing the bill. In fact, they love this bill because it is the “Corker-Cardin” equivalent of the Iran loin cloth bill that bails the Democrats out from being on the hook with voters and gives off the veneer of being tough on national security.

As we noted last week, there is a secondary concern with regard to radical Islamists traveling here on visas from first-world European countries that are part of the Visa Waiver Program, meaning foreign nationals from those countries do not need an in-consulate interview in order to obtain a temporary visa to travel to the U.S.
I call it a secondary concern because despite the problems in France, nobody can deny that even today travelers from France don’t pose anywhere near the risk of the Islamists who travel directly from the Middle East, such as the San Bernardino terrorist who came here on a K-1 visa from Pakistan.

Nonetheless, it would be prudent, as a secondary policy reform to shutting off the refugee program from the Middle East, to require visas from anyone who travels here from several European countries that have large Islamic populations. This bill, sponsored by Dianne Feinstein and Jeff Flake, however, does not drop a single country from the visa waiver program (VWP). In fact, it does not prevent a single terrorist from entering our country. It does nothing to change current policy.

Here is how it works.

The Flake/Obama bill suspends the VWP only for those individuals known to have traveled to Iraq and Syria over the past 5 years (the House version adds a few more countries), thereby requiring those individuals to obtain a visa in order to travel to the U.S. But most potential radical jihadis living in Europe have never travelled to those countries or have instead travelled to other Islamic countries (like Saeed Farook who traveled to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan). Moreover, the ones that did travel to Iraq and Syria are usually not on any sort of watch list that we would detect.

And finally, if they are indeed on a watch list, then we would know about it anyway under current policy. The entire point of the VWP is for first world countries with secure and effective databases to share information and flag anyone who is a security risk. That is why we don’t require a visa. So under existing law, anybody who travelled to these countries should be inadmissible, let alone require a visa to come here. Hence, this bill does not change the reality of a single potential terrorist, unless DHS officials would be willing to turn away those who have Iraq or Syria stamped on their passports.

Thus, it is clear the bipartisan elites are deflecting attention from immigrant visas from Islamic countries with no legitimate vetting tools to nonimmigrant visas from first world countries with solid databases!

It’s no wonder the travel industry, which stridently opposes any secure restrictions on travel, is openly supporting the bill. Typically, when Democrats are on the political ropes they divert attention from 99% of the problem and concede 1% to the American people. In this case, it’s zero percent. This bill literally does nothing.

Republicans are just as desperate as Obama to ignore the real issue – growing mass migration from the Middle East. They will do everything in their power to ignore the issue of Islamic refugee resettlement, even as Obama violates federal law and resettles Sharia-adherent migrants without the consent or even consultation of the states.

Unfortunately, unless the American people wake up, this new focus on European visas will serve as the perfect diversion for the perfidious bipartisan groups of political elites. (For more from the author of “The Coming Bipartisan Betrayal on Middle East Refugees and Visas” please click HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

U.S. State Sues to Block Syrian Refugees

/6 Comments/in , /by

Texas has gone to federal court in its efforts to keep Syrian refugees out of the state, filing suit against the federal government and a refugee resettlement nonprofit.

In a lawsuit filed Wednesday afternoon in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton claims the federal government and the International Rescue Committee — one of about 20 private nonprofits that have a state contract to resettle refugees in Texas — are violating federal law by moving forward with the planned resettlement of two Syrian families. One such family is expected to arrive in Texas as soon as Friday.

The lawsuit argues that the federal government and resettlement group have not fulfilled their contractual obligations to consult with, and provide information to, state officials.

It argues that federal officials violated the Refugee Act of 1980, which requires that the federal government “shall consult regularly” with the state regarding the placement of refugees. Texas also alleges that the International Rescue Committee violated a separate provision of the act requiring the nonprofit work “in close cooperation and advance consultation” with the state.

The suit, filed in the Dallas-based federal court, asks for a temporary injunction barring any Syrian refugees until terms of the contract are met. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey, a George W. Bush appointee. (Read more from “U.S. State Sues to Block Syrian Refugees” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Germany Just Confirmed Everyone’s Worst Fears About Syrian Refugees

/6 Comments/in , /by

Islamic extremists in Germany are using food, shelter and the religion of home as bait as they fish the wave of Syrian refugees entering Germany for new converts to radical Islam.

“They start by saying, ‘We will help you live your faith,’” Torsten Voss of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency told the Wall Street Journal. “The Islamist area comes later — that is, of course, their goal.”

German officials said that refugees who want to attend mosques in search of familiar surroundings are, increasingly, attending those frequented by Islamic extremists. German officials told the Journal that they already know of at least 100 instances in which Islamic extremists known to the authorities have tried to establish contact with refugees.

“I’m afraid that anti-Americanism, anti-Israel sentiment and anti-Semitism will be on the rise,” said Der Tagesspiegel editor in chief Malte Lehming. “We have very limited educational tools to change that. Syria is one of the most anti-Israel countries, influenced by Iran and helped by Hezbollah.”

More than one million Syrian refugees are expected to enter Germany in the next year. The radicalization of Muslim refugees has taken on a new urgency in Europe after disclosure that at least one of the terrorists participating in the Paris attacks entered Europe in the mass of Syrian refugees. (Read more from “Germany Just Confirmed Everyone’s Worst Fears About Syrian Refugees” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Islam USA: Inside America’s Only Muslim-Majority City, Where the Call to Prayer Echoes in the Streets

/13 Comments/in , /by

By Ben Ashford. The rest of America may be agonizing over the security implications of taking in those fleeing the twin horrors of Bashar al-Assad and ISIS.

But Syrian refugees are being welcomed with open arms in Hamtramck, Michigan – America’s first and only majority Muslim city.

Once 90 percent Polish Catholic, the blue-collar enclave just outside Detroit has been transformed by successive waves of immigrants from Bangladesh, Yemen and Bosnia.

Muslims now outnumber non-Muslims, the council has a Muslim majority and the call to prayer echoes through the streets five times a day . . .

Residents, particularly senior citizens, have complained bitterly about being woken up each day by the 6am call to prayer. (Read more from “Islam USA: Inside America’s Only Muslim-Majority City, Where the Call to Prayer Echoes in the Streets” HERE)

________________________________

Cuellar: Syrians Already Entering the U.S., Plan Needed Now

By WOAI. Border Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) says as the U.S. debates the fate of Syrian refugees, the refugees are coming and will continue to arrive on our southern border, and rather than debate, the country needs to start deciding how to handle the coming flood of desperate people from the Middle East, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

“They are going to try to short circuit that wait of 18 to 24 months,” Cuellar told News Radio 1200 WOAI in an exclusive interview. “They will come in here, make their claim, and if there is nothing to hold them, they will be released.”

Two groups of Syrians, mainly families, have already done that, arriving in the U.S. in the Laredo area and then immediately presenting themselves to Border Patrol officers, surrendering, and asking for political asylum.

The standard operating procedure right now is to place them into the family detention centers in Dilley or Karnes City, but many are released on bonds or on ankle monitors after a few months in the facilities. And Cuellar points out that once they are released, the demands of governor like Gov. Abbott that they not be housed in Texas are meaningless. They have the right to settle whenever in the U.S. they want, as long as they present themselves for immigration hearings, which could be set for several years in the future.

Cuellar says that has the effect of scrapping all of the talk of a lengthy wait and ‘vetting period’ for people seeking refugee status. (Read more from “Cuellar: Syrians Already Entering the U.S., Plan Needed Now” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

No Christians: All 132 Syrian Refugees Admitted to U.S. Since Paris Attacks Are Sunni Muslims

/0 Comments/in , /by

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.

No Christian, Druze, Shi’ite, Alawite, or member of any other religious minority in Syria has been admitted over that period, according to data from the State Department Refugee Processing Center.

The majority of the 132 Syrian refugees permitted to resettle in the U.S. since November 13 (72) are male, the minority female (60). Of the 132 total, 39 (29.5 percent) have been men between the ages of 14 and 50.

Another 53 (40 percent) are children aged under 14, of whom 30 are males and 23 females.

The Paris terror attacks, which killed 130 people and were claimed by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS/ISIL), brought fresh scrutiny onto the issue of refugees from the Syrian conflict, amid concerns the terrorist group was seeking to infiltrate Western countries through refugee settlement programs. (Read more from “No Christians: All 132 Syrian Refugees Admitted to U.S. Since Paris Attacks Are Sunni Muslims” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

The Controversy Over Syrian Refugees Misses the Question We Should Be Asking

/1 Comment/in , /by

The jihad waged by radical Islam rips at France from within. The two mass-murder attacks this year that finally induced President Francois Hollande to concede a state of war are only what we see.

Unbound by any First Amendment, the French government exerts pressure on the media to suppress bad news. We do not hear much about the steady thrum of insurrection in the banlieues: the thousands of torched automobiles, the violence against police and other agents of the state, the pressure in Islamic enclaves to ignore the sovereignty of the Republic and conform to the rule of sharia.

What happens in France happens in Belgium. It happens in Sweden where much of Malmo, the third largest city, is controlled by Muslim immigrant gangs — emergency medical personnel attacked routinely enough that they will not respond to calls without police protection, and the police in turn unwilling to enter without back-up. Not long ago in Britain, a soldier was killed and nearly beheaded in broad daylight by jihadists known to the intelligence services; dozens of sharia courts now operate throughout the country, even as Muslim activists demand more accommodations. And it was in Germany, which green-lighted Europe’s ongoing influx of Muslim migrants, that Turkey’s Islamist strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan proclaimed that pressuring Muslims to assimilate in their new Western countries is “a crime against humanity.”

So how many of us look across the ocean at Europe and say, “Yeah, let’s bring some of that here”?

None of us with any sense. Alas, “bring it here” is the order of the day in Washington, under the control of leftists bent on fundamentally transforming America (Muslims in America overwhelmingly support Democrats) and the progressive-lite GOP, which fears the “Islamophobia” smear nearly as much as the “racist” smear. (Read more from “The Controversy Over Syrian Refugees Misses the Question We Should Be Asking” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Watch: Obama Compares Syrian Refugees to Pilgrims in Thanksgiving Address

/7 Comments/in , /by

US President Barack Obama Thursday delivered a Thanksgiving message in which he compared modern refugees to the pilgrims whom the holiday celebrates, urging Americans to open their arms to the potential immigrants.

“Nearly four centuries after the Mayflower set sail, the world is still full of pilgrims — men and women who want nothing more than the chance for a safer, better future for themselves and their families,” Obama said in his weekly address, referring to the boat on which the pilgrims arrived in the New World.

Thanksgiving was first celebrated by the group after fleeing religious persecution in England. For many Americans, it has become a family-oriented day marked with an enormous meal of roast turkey, an assortment of side dishes and a slice or two of pie.

“I’ve been touched by the generosity of the Americans who’ve written me letters and emails in recent weeks, offering to open their homes to refugees fleeing the brutality of ISIL,” Obama said, referring to the Islamic State group.

Immigration has taken center stage as an important issue ahead of the 2016 presidential race but reached fever pitch following the deadly Paris attacks earlier this month. (Read more from “Obama Compares Syrian Refugees to Pilgrims in Thanksgiving Address” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.