North Dakota: Will Burleigh County Vote for Unspecified Number of Refugees in Coming Years

I told you here last week about how county commissioners in Burleigh County (Bismarck), ND had postponed a decision about whether the county would ‘welcome’ refugees or not after President Trump has gone out on a political limb to invite states and mostly counties to say whether they want more refugees (or not) now, and into the foreseeable future.

(Have you taken 15 minutes to make your calls?)

Commissioner Brian Bitner

So many people turned out at the meeting that the decision was postponed, but will be on the agenda tomorrow night in Bismarck.

One of the smartest things I’ve heard from any elected official is this from Commissioner Chairman Brian Bitner:

“I haven’t seen anything in this package, anywhere, that tells me that we’re consenting to five or 50 or 500 or anything. So North Dakota is already the highest per capita state for refugee resettlement in terms of number of citizens, so in the absence of any sort of number, there’s no way we could know the cost to the state or the county, and I simply can’t support that,” said Bitner.

And there won’t be any number given in advance!

When a governor or local elected official sends permission to the US State Department it is an open-ended invitation for any number from anywhere in the world.

It also signals that the state and local government agree to take on the financial burden of the social service costs refugees rack up.  (State and local taxpayers carry most of the tax burden for their care as the federal government has over time shifted the cost to the states.)

That 50-100 mile radius issue!

So, know this, if Burleigh County says yes tomorrow night they are saying yes for placement of third worlders in any location within a hundred miles of the county.

I couldn’t do what some Tennesseans did (draw circles on a map), but I did find a radius calculating tool and this is what I learned.

If you can’t read the small print:

This region includes 22 counties: Burleigh, ND; Dunn, ND; Emmons, ND; Foster, ND; Grant, ND; Hettinger, ND; Kidder, ND; Logan, ND; McHenry, ND; McIntosh, ND; McLean, ND; Mercer, ND; Morton, ND; Oliver, ND; Sheridan, ND; Sioux, ND… plus 6 more counties.

So all of you who live within a hundred miles, know that you are not off the hook!

Refugee advocates in ND are claiming that incoming refugee numbers are so low under Trump that there won’t be that many coming to Burleigh County anyway.  Those refugee promoters also say Bismarck needs more diversity!

Stop and think!  When Trump is no longer in the White House, the refugee spigot is going to be opened wide and your county will have said—bring ’em in!

Here is the news about the meeting tomorrow night.  If you live in Bismarck  or anywhere within a hundred miles try to get there!

Even if you can’t beat Open Borders Inc, you can at least show up and thank the President for giving you an opportunity to help decide the future of your community.

Burleigh County to Hold Special Refugee Resettlement Meeting

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A North Dakota county will hold a special meeting next week to take comments on whether it should resettle additional refugees.

Burleigh County commissioners postponed action on the matter at a meeting Monday after an overflow crowd showed up to address the issue.

A recent executive order by President Donald Trump stated that new efforts to resettle refugees would have to receive permission from state and local governments. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum announced last month that the state would continue to receive refugees as long as local governments agreed.

The public will be able to voice opinions Dec. 9 on whether to allow Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota to continue resettling refugees in the county. Commissioners could vote on the matter at the special meeting Monday.

The Cass County Commission voted unanimously Monday to allow Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota to continue its refugee resettlement program.

This post is filed in my “Where to find information” category here.  Find recent posts about the President’s Executive Order archived there.

Oh, and did I ask:

Have you taken 15 minutes to make your calls?

Arizona: Republican Governor Ducey Says Arizona Wants MORE Impoverished Refugees

Have you taken 15 minutes to make your calls?

 

Apparently Open Borders Inc. made more calls in Arizona than anyone concerned about the high number of impoverished third worlders Arizona is ‘welcoming’.

Arizona Republican Governor Ducey: Sure we will take an unknown number of refugees the UN and the feds pick for us. Arizona has run out of our own vulnerable people so we will get more from Asia, Africa and the Middle East. And, eventually the new Americans will vote us Republicans out of office.

Arizona is the fifth highest state in the nation for refugee placement and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey sure has swallowed the kool-aid according to this story at Tucson.com.

And, so has the Republican Speaker of the House!

Ducey could easily have said that Arizona needs a little break to assimilate all those we have taken in recent years, but he didn’t.

What he did was invite refugee placement in the state at any number Washington and the contractors want to send.

And, effectively has placed the financial burden of their care on state and local taxpayers as the feds have long ago stopped financially supporting many of the costs of social services to refugees.

Ducey declines Trump offer to let Arizona opt out of taking refugees accepted into the US

PHOENIX — Gov. Doug Ducey said Friday he won’t take advantage of President Trump’s offer to allow Arizona to opt out of taking refugees.

“Throughout our nation’s history, the United States has been a refuge for individuals fleeing religious and political persecution in their homeland,” Ducey wrote Friday to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. “And Arizona has historically been one of the most welcoming states in terms of the number of refugees resettled here.”

Specifically, the Republican governor told Pompeo he officially is consenting to “initial refugee resettlement in Arizona.”

The federal government works with local authorities and nonprofit agencies to resettle the refugees accepted into this country. What changed recently is that Trump, in an executive order, said cities and states must provide written consent for such resettlement. His order effectively gave cities and states a veto option.

[….]

Ducey’s letter to Pompeo said one thing that made him decide to permit continued resettlement is his belief that refugees pose no risk.

“Refugees arriving in the United States have been vetted and approved by the appropriate national security agencies and the Department of State and have been granted legal entry to make a new home in the land of the free,” Ducey wrote. [This is boilerplate contractor language so clearly he simply cut and pasted from some template letter he was provided.—ed]

[….]

Bishop Edward Weisenburger fails to tell the citizens of Arizona that the US Conference of Catholic Bishops gets over 90% of its refugee funding to support refugees from federal taxpayers.

That letter, however, may not fully clear the way. Ducey press aide Patrick Ptak said similar approvals are needed from local governments. He said that most likely involves only Pima and Maricopa county officials as well as those in affected cities.

[Try making one of the 100 mile radius maps like patriots did in Tennessee and see how many other counties are involved.—ed]

[….]

The governor’s decision drew praise from Bishop Edward Weisenburger of the Catholic Diocese of Tucson.

“Refugee resettlement is a critical ministry which we, along with a great many dioceses across our nation, have provided for many years,” he said in a prepared statement. “Providing aid to those in dire need and who are fearing for their lives is an important part of Catholic teaching.”  [Just tell the TRUTH for once! No wonder the Catholic Church is losing its flocks!– Ed]

US Catholic Bishops Bemoan Loss of Federal Funding under Trump

Tucson.com continues….

The governor’s decision also is supported by House Speaker Rusty Bowers, R-Mesa.

More here.  It is too sickening for me to continue.

He claims his worries of 2015 (terrorism) have gone away and he says he is satisfied that the citizens of Arizona have been consulted.

This post is filed in my ‘Where to find information’ category which contains all of the posts in recent weeks about the Trump Executive Order.

The list of governors who have said yes to more refugees is in my right hand side bar, here.