In the wake of the news I reported yesterday, that Republican Governor Chris Sununu has said NH wants more refugees assuming cities concur, Concord Mayor Jim Bouley says he will support the continued placement of impoverished third worlders in his city.
Concord’s Democrat Mayor Jim Bouley: “I see no reason why we would not sign it” (at December 9th council meeting)
That isn’t surprising, but what did surprise me in this article from the Concord Monitoris that apparently guidance has gone out to those in the refugee industry about a December 20th deadline when both a state governor and someone (?) at the city/county level are in agreement that refugees are welcome, and that welcome must be forwarded in writing to the Secretary of State.
I’ve been searching and have yet to find any such published guidance. However, in this post and a couple more to follow I’ll tell you what I have found that should help you to know what you must do where you live.
So far as we have noted, six governors are on board for more refugees: Washington, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia and now New Hampshire. North Dakota’s governor took a wishy-washy position and said he will go along if his cities want more refugees.
After Trump rule, Concord must opt-in to accept more refugees
For years, Concord has been a state leader in the acceptance of refugees, taking in more than any other New Hampshire city since 2010.
But whether that practice continues will require a sign-off from the city, following a new policy from President Donald Trump.
In an executive order issued in September, Trump required that both states and localities actively approve refugee resettlements moving forward. Without explicit written consent from both the state’s governor and the city or town, new outside refugees may not be housed in those cities, the order states – a change prompting outcry from refugee rights groups.
On Wednesday, Gov. Chris Sununu announced he had given that statewide consent, penning a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo granting permission for New Hampshire to accept refugees broadly. But he left it up to individual municipalities on how to proceed.
“With this action, it is now up to each city’s mayor whether they want to opt-in to accepting refugees,” Sununu said in a statement.
So far, I have been unable to find any published guidance referenced in this next line:
Now, the pressure is on. Cities and towns have until Dec. 20 to submit their letters of approval to accept resettlement of refugees, according to new guidance from the federal Health and Human Services department and the U.S. Secretary of State that follows the executive order. Sometime around Christmas, HHS will release a list of the states and municipalities that have done so, according to the order.
In an interview Friday, Concord Mayor Jim Bouley said he supports resettlement and that he’ll bring the question before the City Council at its Dec. 9 meeting.
“I see no reason why we would not sign it,” he said. “I think this only makes sense. So I look forward with the blessing of the council to sign it.”
I’m not the only one confused!
Meanwhile, as states and cities begin responding to the late December deadline, aspects of the new rule are in flux. Some refugee advocacy groups have called the executive order illegal, with the national Catholic Legal Immigration Network arguing it contravenes federal law giving the Office of Refugee Resettlement the authority to place refugees.
Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig is on board for more refugees and is just waiting for guidance about whether her whole council must sign off.
And the rules are silent on whether approval is necessary from select boards or city councils – or whether mayors can signal approval on their own prerogatives.
That uncertainty is creating some delays. Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig is supportive of continuing the acceptance of refugees, her office said Friday, but is seeking clarity on whether that move needs sign-off from the Queen City’s full city council.
Here is what I do know: The refugee industry has filed suit to stop the Executive Order,see here.
But they are also hedging their bets in case they can’t get it stopped in time which is why they have gone all-in for a grassroots campaign (more in my next post) to pressure governors and mayors into saying they want more refugees.
As I noted here, they see their grassroots and media campaign as a win-win. They can make Trump look bad, and at the same time force governors and local elected officials to go on record supporting more refugees. (They are looking ahead to the day when Trump is no longer in the White House and they expect the refugee spigot to open wide!)
And, although we see the Executive Order as flawed, you need to get moving and at least let your local elected officials (and governors) know that you are not in agreement with supporting more poor immigrants especially as there are plenty of vulnerable Americans in need of help.
If you remain silent then your elected officials will assume their position for more refugees will have no political cost to them.
And, if you are waiting for instructions from some immigration control organization, forget it!
Not sure if your town/city is already a resettlement site? See the State Department’s map here.
New Hampshire becomes the sixth state (that I know of) to tell the President that his/her state is all-in for more impoverished refugees. You can bet the Open Borders agitators are joyful about another Republican governor (see Utah) telling the Prez that the state is open for more third worlders.
Most recently I told you about Virginia jumping on the bandwagon bringing the number to five at that point: Pennsyvania, Washington, Oregon and Utah having expressed their desires earlier. North Dakota Gov. Burgum’s response is frankly wishy-washy leaving us uncertain about where he stands.
I’m keeping a list of the governors who want to see refugees numbers increased in their states here at RRWin the right hand sidebar.
Sununu Consents to Refugee Resettlement Following Exec Order
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu has consented to receiving refugees at the state level, in response to an executive order from President Donald Trump that requires consultation with states and municipalities about the settlement of refugees in specific areas.
Is that an America First! sign behind Republican Governor Chris Sununu? Hmmmm!
Trump issued the order in September saying the federal government should resettle refugees only in those jurisdictions in which both the state and local governments have consented to receive refugees.
Sununu, a Republican, said Friday his administration will work closely with area agencies to ensure that those who are resettled in New Hampshire have the chance to become “hardworking members of our local communities.”
New Hampshire municipalities can now opt-in to accept refugees.
Because there are no guidelines available yet (that I know of) on how the President’s September Executive Order is supposed to work, it isn’t clear how your community will opt-in or out!
But, as you saw in my posttwo days ago, 88 mayors are declaring they are in!
Other than to satisfy their Leftwing constituents, these governors don’t need to be making any public declarations until some guidelines come from Washington.
So, it is up to you to let them know that this embrace of more refugees is not a political freebie for them. There is a political cost to their declaration.
Editor: I hope you had a great day giving thanks with loved ones yesterday.
Much to my surprise the post I wrote on the day before Thanksgiving about 88 mayors demanding more refugees went off-the-charts viral, so if you didn’t see it, check it out.
And, thank you dear readers for continuing to follow RRW and special thanks to the donations from many of you that have made it possible for Refugee Resettlement Watch’s renewed presenceon the internet.
On a trip to Japan a few days ago Pope Francis learned first hand that Japan steadfastly maintains that it wants to keep its unique language and culture and not become a multiculty polyglot nation as so many European nations have become.
Pope’s message of openness to refugees prompts backlash in Japan
TOKYO – A visit to Japan by Pope Francis and his dream of a nuclear-free world drew largely positive headlines this week in Japan. But when he tried to gently encourage the Japanese to extend a hand of friendship to refugees, the backlash on social media was significant.
Japan has some of the toughest policies toward refugees and asylum seekers among the world’s richest nations, and a reputation for being relatively closed toward outsiders.
The pope’s effort to preach a more accepting message was not universally accepted.
[….]
The story was one of the most read on the TV Asahi website on Tuesday and Wednesday and tweets with the words “accept refugees” were trending.
But the response seemed more negative than positive.
“Do that first in the Vatican,” tweeted @Ryounagasugi7, a tweet liked by 14,600 people and retweeted 4,700 times.
[….]
“I am sorry. We’ve seen how European countries have failed terribly. Even so, do you still say that? First of all, we are not a country where Christians are dominant. Would you please ask other ‘Christian countries’? Such as America, or America, or America,” tweeted @no_problem666.
Response by a bunch of No Borders activists: Shut down the refugee-phobia on Twitter!
After seeing the flood of negative comments, a group of volunteers who support asylum seekers detained at a facility in Ushiku north of Tokyo called on Twitter to act.
“Tweets that would inflame refugee-phobia, xenophobia are growing, @TwitterJP should deal with it as its own platform has been used to inflame xenophobia,” they wrote on their account @freeushiku.
Two days ago the US Conference of Mayors told America that 18,000 refugees for fiscal year 2020 is too low and that 100,000 a year is their preferred number.
Washington DC mayor Bowser signed the letter. No surprise as she was a leader of the DC Women’s (pussy hats) march against the Prez. Checked the data and just as I suspected DC takes very few refugees—only 135 in TEN years.
They also made it clear that they do not want a local or a state role in deciding where refugees are placed saying it would create a “patchwork of conflicting policies.”
That means of course they are affirming that Washington (and its nine contractors that monopolize all refugee resettlement in America) knows best. (Well, except for when Trump is in the White House!)
Here (below) is their press release and a screenshot of all those mayors who signed the letter. (I told readersthree days ago that the aim of the Open Borders community organizers was to get local elected officials on board.)
This once again confirms that the Left has captured local elected offices and the only hope of pulling out of this decline is for you all to get involved locally where you live and find candidates to challenge them. It is a tall order that will only be accomplishedif Trump gets four more yearsto buy time for America Firsters to get to work!
(There are 1,408 mayorsin the conference, so I guess these 88 are calling the shots! What do the other 1,320 think about the Conference taking this position?)
Nation’s Mayors Urge Administration to Rescind Executive Order Reducing Refugee Admissions
Washington, DC – Today, 88 bipartisan mayors from across the country sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, urging the Administration to rescind a September 26 executive order that revamps the U.S. resettlement system and could drastically reduce, if not entirely stop, the resettlement of refugees in cities.
The mayors also urged Secretary Pompeo to return this year’s refugee admissions to previous annual levels. The Administration announced the same day that it is slashing the number of refugees who may enter the country in 2020 to 18,000–the lowest since the program began in 1980 and a reduction of nearly 80% from just a few years ago.
The feds and their nine contractors (not elected by anyone!) know best!
The letter states, “The Executive Order would fundamentally change the structure of the U.S. resettlement program by devolving key decisions primarily to the states and ultimately lead to a patchwork of conflicting policies running contrary to the purpose of a national resettlement program….
[….]
In addition to addressing the country’s strong tradition of providing safe haven, freedom and opportunity to refugees fleeing the world’s most dangerous and desperate situation, the letter also cites the positive impact refugees have on the cultural and economic prosperity of cities and the nation as a reason to increase the cap.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors has long advocated for policies that provide adequate support for refugees and refugee resettlement.
The most recent policy adopted by USCM on this issue calls for admitting at least 100,000 refugees per year.
Here (below) is a screenshot of the signatures. Does your mayor want to cede all power to the UN/US State Department and its contractors to decide how many impoverished people your city will host?
Remember fed’s contractors only are responsible for placing refugees and getting them signed up for their “services.” Most of their care is on you—local and state taxpayers!
That is what these mayors are asking for—more poverty for your town or city!
They say the list is bipartisan but I don’t have the time to go through and figure out who might be a Republican, so let me know and I will do an update and tell readers which ones are Rs.
Here is what you should do!
Make sure that your mayor knows that this is not a freebie political position for them!
If you find your mayor on the list, write a letter to the local paper and say that your mayor is advocating for 100,000 refugees for America and stating unequivocally that he/she does not want to have any say on how many are placed in your city.
The mayors who signed the letter want that decision left up to bureaucrats in Washington along with the nine contractors that monopolize all refugee resettlement in America (below):
You may remember Democrat Governor Northam because of the “blackface” scandal he endured earlier this year, one which would have driven a Republican governor from office and into political oblivion.
Gov. Ralph Northam—we want more third worlders for Virginia!
And, surely you recall his cruel words during an abortion debate about letting babies die post-birth.
So it should be no surprise that one friend quipped when told the news, “yes, kill the babies to make room for the refugees!”
Unless I have missed some, Virginia becomes the 5th state to tell President Trump that the state wants MORE third world poverty (eventually more voters for the Democrat party)!
In the right hand side bar here at RRWI’m keeping track and so far we have PA, OR, UT, and WA as states where the governor has said, send us more!
As I said here, the Open Borders Refugee Contractors are organizing nationally to pressure the President and to get ready for the flood of migrants they expect once Trump is no longer standing in the way.
Gov. Northam: ‘We welcome refugee resettlement in Virginia’
RICHMOND, Va. (WSET) — Governor Ralph Northam sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Monday confirming Virginia will continue to welcome refugees fleeing danger and persecution.
“I have read federal Executive Order 13888, and I write to reaffirm Virginia’s position that we welcome refugee resettlement in the Commonwealth,” he wrote in the letter.
President Donald Trump signed the order in September explaining that the Federal Government will only resettle refugees in those jurisdictions in which both the state and local governments have consented to receive refugees under the Department of State’s Reception and Placement Program.
Two things that jumped out at me from the Governor’s letter indicating that he doesn’t understand the program as it is being carried out by the contractors in the state:
Because of our proximity to Washington, D.C., we are a preferred location for many Special Immigrant Visa holders – Iraqi and Afghanistan refugees who provided services to the U.S. military in those countries, and whose lives and families are in danger because of that service.
What the heck is he talking about? Why do previous employees of the US military have to live in proximity to Washington, D.C.? We have brought tens of thousands of Afghan and Iraqi SIVsas separate from the Refugee Admissions Program over the last ten years.
We are never told how the SIVs are divvied up among the contractors and clearly if it is true that more of the Muslim Afghans and Iraqis are being placed near DC (Northern Virginia is mosque-central after all), the contractors have a hand in making that decision along with the feds. The Governor is out of the loop!
If the governor is telling the truth, Virginians should be asking why they are getting a disproportionate share of SIVs.
Virginia Community Capacity Initiative?
And then this:
Virginia helps refugees settle into new homes only in those localities that participate in the Virginia Community Capacity Initiative, which ensures that a community’s elected officials, faith leaders, schools, and other stakeholders are committed to helping refugees build new homes and lives. We work with resettlement agencies that have deep ties to these communities.
“Resettlement agencies” are of course the federal refugee contractors. LOL! and I bet a contractor drafted the governor’s letter.
I had never heard of this Virginia Community Capacity Initiative and when I searched around I found very little, just some verbiage at some Catholic sites about finding housing for refugees.
I doubt the program has any statewide application so for the governor to suggest that all of the communities in the state that receive refugees have already said they can handle more refugees is a stretch (well, a lie!).
I decided to see just how many ‘welcoming’ communities existed in Virginia and so naturally went to the Refugee Processing Centerdata base.
I limited my search to the last ten years of refugee placement in the state and compiled this list (below) of cities/towns that had refugees placed in their community.
And, you should know that the Afghan/Iraq special refugees are not included in this database. Indeed, I have never found any database which tells us where the SIVs are sent.
Some locations may have only received a handful of refugees, but nonetheless, the list is extensive. I’m just wondering if the Virginia Community Capacity Initiativewas at work in all of them.
Virginia ‘welcoming’ communities:
And, while I was having fun with the data last night, here are the top ten ethnic groups resettled in Virginia in the last ten years.
11,800 regular refugees (not including SIVs) have been placed in Virginia since October 2009 (a small number compared to some other states). But, again we don’t know how many of the special refugees, SIVs, were provided housing, medical care, and other welfare services in the state.
Virginia’s top ten:
Iraq (3,438)
Bhutan (2,294)
DR Congo (1,328)
Iran (642)
Burma (636)
Afghanistan (536)
Somalia (436)
Eritrea (406)
Syria (361)
Sudan (275)
As Isaid yesterday at ‘Frauds and Crooks’ …. as Virginia turns blue, we see some very disturbing criminal cases involving ‘new Americans’ of all stripes in the Old Dominion. Check out my posts there.
