Month: January 2020

Republican Governors who Consented to Accept Refugees in FY2020 Scrambling to Explain

~ Ann Corcoran ~ 5 Comments

I can’t possibly write an all-encompassing post about all the feedback I’m getting from concerned citizens who are hopping mad that their Republican governor foolishly (and prematurely) jumped on the bandwagon to accept more refugees for their states just so the nine federal contractors*** could get their requests for MONEY into the US State Department ASAP.

Here are the 19 Rs who have thumbed their nose at the President’s effort to rein-in the UN-driven Refugee Admissions Program.

The first wave of governors to pander to the Left are marked in orange, and the second wave is in hot pink.

If your governor hasn’t caved yet, keep up the pressure.  Florida, Georgia and Texas are the big targets for Open Borders Inc.

 

Last night John Binder at Breitbart published a letter from Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson to his legislators who want answers.

Since most of the governors are completely unfamiliar with this 4-decades-old program, we can only assume that someone is feeding them talking points like those in the memo Binder published.

Go here to read it all.

Exclusive: Memo Reveals How GOP Governors are Pitching Refugee Resettlement to Opponents

I want to just focus on a couple of points in the governor’s attempt to explain himself.  First this:

Refugees are eligible for 36 months of case management assistance and financial assistance when they first arrive through a combination of federal and private funds, which Canopy manages. They do not receive any other special financial assistance aside from typical public assistance available to other low-income Arkansans (Medicaid, SNAP, TANF etc.). 100% of refugee households have seen reductions or terminations of this public assistance because of income within the first 6 months of arrival in the state.

LOL!  They don’t get any public assistance other than Medicaid, SNAP (food stamps), TANF, etc!  What is the etc.?

100% have seen reductions in their welfare use?  Where is the data governor? Or is the governor just parroting what the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service SUBCONTRACTOR is telling him.

I also want to bring to your attention this section of his talking points memo.

Who will be placed in Arkansas?

African nations and those countries in which the United States has engaged in military actions and cooperating nationals are at risk.

I would be asking the governor which African nations?  Somalia? And, then he is lumping the Special Immigrant Visas (mostly from Afghanistan and Iraq, but possibly soon Syria) in with the regular refugees.  I told you here that the Trump administration is predicting 10,000 SIVs on top of the 18.000 regular refugees for 2020.

And, get this!  According to the Funding Guidance I’ve been yakking about for days, we will be taking another 10,000 SIVs from Iraq and Afghanistan (maybe Syria!) in the 2020 fiscal year. That is over and above the 18,000 ceiling that the President determined for the year.

The FY 2020 ceiling for refugee admissions established by the President, after consultation with Congress, is 18,000.  In addition, applicants should include 10,000 Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) recipients in their planning. Applicants should assume similar admissions and recipient numbers for performance periods beyond FY 2020.

Note that last bit—the contractors should expect similar numbers beyond 2020.

One more thing, don’t miss LIRS getting direct payola from Tyson Foods!

Starting later today (I hope), I’m starting a new series of posts I’ll call ‘Knowledge is Power’ to go back for many new readers and help you get up to speed on how the UN/US Refugee Admissions Program operates and how you can find out more about your state’s involvement (or lack of involvement) with the program.

 

***For new readers these (below) are the nine federally-funded refugee contractors that operate as a huge conveyor belt monopolizing all refugee placement in America.

A ‘religious’ message from CWS one of three federally funded contractors suing to stop the President’s effort to reform the UN-driven Refugee Admissions Program.

And, they do not limit their advocacy toward only legal immigration programs, but are heavily involved in supporting the lawlessness at our borders.

The question isn’t as much about refugees per se, but about who is running federal immigration policy now and into the future?  

(I plan to say this once a day from now on!)

I continue to argue that these nine contractors are the heart of America’s Open Borders movement and thus there can never be long-lasting reform of US immigration policy when these nine un-elected phony non-profits are paid by the taxpayers to work as community organizers pushing an open borders agenda.

Federal Judge Gives Warm Reception to Refugee Contractors and their Bid to Stop Trump Refugee Reform

~ Ann Corcoran ~ 7 Comments
LOL! Don’t miss “notable rulings” by Clinton-appointed Judge Peter Jo Messitte at wikipedia. He banned use of words “Redskins” from his court in 2014. I think you can see how the POLITICAL winds are blowing! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Jo_Messitte

Of course I wasn’t there and you can never completely believe the media spin by major news outlets like the Associated Press, but past experience informs us that, yes, the federal judge hearing the refugee contractors’ case is sympathetic to the three federal refugee contractors and not the Trump Administration.

In fact, he asked the contractors’ attorney if this was a political move by the President.

Did he ask the complainers if they were operating with political motives?  I bet not!

Why isn’t he simply looking at the LAW?

(By the way, be sure to see Michelle Malkin’s excellent piece on the President vs. the contractors yesterday to see the long list of the Open Borders activists expected to be in attendance for the political press conference the contractors held after the hearing.)

Here is the AP story about the case I told you about on Tuesday:

Judge weighs bid to stop Trump’s refugee resettlement limit

But of course this isn’t political for the contractors (ha!) as they held a press conference outside the court house after the hearing. Looks like they had a small crowd.

 

GREENBELT, Md. — A federal judge on Wednesday pressed a government lawyer to explain why President Donald Trump signed an executive order allowing state and local governments to reject refugees, questioning whether the change was politically motivated.

U.S. District Judge Peter Messitte in Maryland didn’t immediately rule on a request by three national refugee resettlement agencies for a preliminary injunction stopping the Trump administration from enforcing the order.

During a hearing on the request, the judge said the president’s order essentially changed a federal law governing the resettlement of refugees.

“On what authority is the president acting?” Messitte asked Justice Department attorney Bradley Humphreys.

Humphreys said the 1980 Refugee Act gives the president “ample authority” to make such a change.

“Why change it now?” Messitte asked. “Is it purely a political thing?”

Humphreys said the executive order is designed to enhance the involvement of state and local officials in the process of resettling refugees. But he insisted it doesn’t give them a “veto” over resettlement decisions.

The Trump administration announced in November that resettlement agencies must get written consent from state and local officials in any jurisdiction where they want to help resettle refugees beyond June 2020.

[….]

And, the contractors are not political? Here Mark Hetfield, CEO of HIAS, helped organize an anti-Trump rally along with then MN Rep. Keith Ellison less than a month after the President was inaugurated in 2017. Did the Judge ask HIAS about any political motivations? https://refugeeresettlementwatch.org/2017/02/14/breitbart-federally-funded-refugee-resettlement-contractor-hias-organized-ny-rally-against-trump/“

Church World Service, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service and HIAS — a Jewish nonprofit — filed the lawsuit in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Nov. 21. They are three of the nine national organizations*** agencies that have agreements with the federal government to provide housing and other services for refugees. [Notice AP won’t say that there is federal money involved for the contractors.—ed]

They have been providing these resettlement services for decades,” plaintiffs’ attorney Justin Cox said. [Makes it sound like it’s all being done with their private ‘religious’ charity.—ed]

At least 41 states have publicly agreed to accept refugees, but a governor’s decision doesn’t preclude local officials from refusing to give their consent.

For instance, the Democratic mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts, has refused to give written consent for refugees to be resettled in the city. [This especially grates on Hetfield because the subcontractor being shut out in Springfield is one of HIAS’s subcontractors.—ed]

HIAS President Mark Hetfield called it “unacceptable and un-American” that refugees could be banned from living in cities or even entire states. He said the executive order doesn’t explain how the secretary of state could override a governor or county official’s refusal to give consent.

“It’s even worse than a veto,” Hetfield said. “It’s very clear that we can’t even submit for a place unless we think that they’re going to consent.”

LOL! He says they can’t “submit for a place!”

That is code for ‘we can’t put our applications into the US State Department for our MONEY’—the money that flowed to them by the millions for decades from your (taxpayer) wallets to their salaries, overhead, travel and so forth.

More here.

 

***For new readers these (below) are the nine federally-funded refugee contractors that operate as a huge conveyor belt monopolizing all refugee placement in America.

A ‘religious’ message from CWS one of three federally funded contractors suing to stop the President’s effort to reform the UN-driven Refugee Admissions Program.

And, they do not limit their advocacy toward only legal immigration programs, but are heavily involved in supporting the lawlessness at our borders.

The question isn’t as much about refugees per se, but about who is running federal immigration policy now and into the future?  

(I plan to say this once a day from now on!)

I continue to argue that these nine contractors are the heart of America’s Open Borders movement and thus there can never be long-lasting reform of US immigration policy when these nine un-elected phony non-profits are paid by the taxpayers to work as community organizers pushing an open borders agenda.

 

Second County to Vote NO for More Refugees is in Minnesota

~ Ann Corcoran ~ 6 Comments

Previously, I reported that Appomattox County, Virginia had gone on record in response to the President’s refugee resettlement reform plan and said no thanks to refugee resettlement.

Every county in America is up for grabs as the US State Department hires its contractors for later in Fiscal Year 2020 to place the Africans, Asians and Middle Easterners (largely chosen by the UN) destined for Anytown, USA.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltrami_County,_Minnesota

Now check this out, Beltrami County, Minnesota voted Tuesday to tell the State Department to count them out. 

Even if Beltrami has not been a target site in the past, they want to make it clear that at least for FY2020 they don’t want to be like some other of the refugee hotbeds in the state.

Speaking of hotbeds, Stearns County (St. Cloud) voted to table the issue until the end of the month as did several other refugee resettlement locations in the state.

 

From the Bemidji Pioneer where reporter Matthew Liedke did an excellent job of explaining the complex issue.  H/T Ron

UPDATED: Beltrami County votes no to accepting refugees

Tuesday’s no vote in Bemidji was the first for any county in Minnesota.
An estimated 200 people came out to let their elected officials know that they don’t want to become a resettlement site for 2020.

BEMIDJI — With applause from a loud, passionate crowd Beltrami County on Tuesday, Jan. 7, became the first local government unit in Minnesota to refuse refugee resettlements.

In a 3-2 vote, the county’s Board of Commissioners chose to opt out of accepting refugee resettlements. The decision comes months after President Donald Trump signed an executive order enhancing state and local involvement in refugee resettlements. The order says the federal government “should resettle refugees only in those jurisdictions in which both the State and local governments have consented to receive refugees.”

While the order doesn’t take effect until June, though, resettlement affiliates and nonprofits are required to submit their placement strategies to the State Department by Jan. 31. Because of the short timeline, District 1 Commissioner Craig Gaasvig said organizing a public hearing wouldn’t be feasible, and as a result, the crowd of at least 200 people weren’t able to comment Tuesday at the meeting in Bemidji.

[….]

While no official comment period was held, the standing room only crowd extending out into the lobby of the County Administration Building did make itself heard at various times in the meeting. Additionally, when asked by Gaasvig for a show of hands on how many were opposed to accepting refugee resettlements, a clear majority of the crowd raised their hands. More than 200 people attended the meeting.

[….]

The refugee subject has been the talk of the area for the past few days. While it wasn’t on the agenda Monday for Bemidji’s City Council meeting, City Hall was still packed with individuals expressing concern over the matter.

Somalis have dominated the refugee flow to Minnesota, resettled there mostly thanks to Catholic Charities and Lutheran Social Services.

Earlier Tuesday, the St. Louis County Board voted 4-3 to delay its response to refugee resettlement until May after two-and-a-half hours of testimony in Duluth.

Counties to have approved accepting refugees after the executive order takes effect include Blue Earth, Kandiyohi and Nicollet. According to the Associated Press, the nation’s first county to ban refugee resettlement was Appomattox County, Va., where commissioners voted 4-1 on Dec. 17 to deny consent to resettlement.

[….]

Since 1980, more than 100,000 individuals have come to Minnesota through the United States Refugee Admissions Program.

Much more here and don’t miss the video of the meeting!

Texas: Iraqi Refugee Arrested for Murder of Colorado Woman

~ Ann Corcoran ~ 5 Comments

But, Texas isn’t sending him back to Colorado immediately because they are investigating potential other crimes he may have committed in Texas.

Mother of three dead in Colorado

This reminds me of something a friend said yesterday.

Going forward, any governor or county commission that tells the President—send us more refugees—will ‘own it’ when a refugee takes an American’s job, costs us for consuming social services Americans need, or commits a violent crime in their jurisdictions.  

The consenting elected official will not be able to blame Washington, but it will be on them and I’ll be right here to point out that connection going forward.

From Fox 31 Denver:

Man suspected of killing woman at Sheridan hotel arrested in Houston

 

HOUSTON — A man suspected of killing a woman in the Denver suburb of Sheridan has been arrested in Houston.

According to law enforcement sources, Abbas Abdal Kathem Abed was found at a Houston homeless shelter. Sheridan police worked alongside Houston police and the U.S. Marshals Service to find Abed.

Abed’s minivan had been located in the Houston area a few weeks ago, but law enforcement sources say Abed was arrested Thursday shortly after they received a tip from the shelter.

Abed had been on the run since Dec. 1, 2019, when 31-year-old Chelsea Anne Snider was found dead at a hotel in the 2900 block of West Hampden Avenue.

Snider died from blunt force trauma and stabbing, law enforcement sources said Thursday.

Abed had been employed as an Uber driver. Following Snider’s death, Uber said Abed no longer has access to the app. Uber does not believe their ridesharing app had anything to do with the crime because the platform was turned off at the time of the incident.

Abed is an Iraqi refugee. Investigators believe he may have gone to Houston because of Iraqi friends he met there when he first came to the U.S.  [Begs the question—what sort of people are his Iraqi friends?—ed]

A law enforcement source says Abed’s extradition to Colorado could be delayed because Houston police are investigating crimes he may have committed there, including attempted murder.

Every time there is a violent crime or attempted terrorist attack by a ‘VETTED’ refugee (vetting is a joke of course!), we should be told which of the nine federal contractors were responsible for placing that criminal in an unsuspecting community.  There ought to be a law!

I can’t pin this alleged murderer on Texas Governor Abbott, but if he signs on for more refugees for Texas, I will be holding him responsible for future criminals arriving in the state and you should too!

Tomorrow Three Refugee Contractors Will be in Federal Court to Try to Kill Trump’s First Effort to Reform Refugee Program

~ Ann Corcoran ~ 6 Comments

We have reported on the case several times recently, but thought that the details of tomorrow’s court date in Maryland would be of interest to you.

HIAS’s Mark Hetfileld (left) protesting the President along with Church World Service in front of the White House in 2018. https://um-insight.net/in-the-world/advocating-justice/faith-groups-sue-trump-administration-over-refugee-resettlem/

 

Three big fish representing the Refugee Industry will be available to the press following the hearing.

This whole effort by the President to solicit consents (on non-consents) of governors and county elected officials throws a monkey wrench in the works for the nine contractors*** who have for decades been able to place refugees in pretty much any place they chose to set up a subcontractor office (of course in consultation with their ideological partners in the US State Department).

They will be in court to argue that you, taxpayers and citizens of Anytown, USA, have no right to voice your concerns about their ‘religious’ work of placing impoverished third worlders throughout America. 

And, specifically that the President is blocking them “from fulfilling their faith calling and missions to ‘welcome the stranger,” says Church World Service’s Erol Kekic here.

Below is the news from something called Value Walk:

LIRS, CWS, HIAS vs Trump

 

This Wednesday [tomorrow!], on January 8, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland will hear arguments on the Trump Administration’s Executive Order allowing state and local officials to stop refugees from being resettled in their jurisdictions.

The new order was signed on September 26, 2019, and for the first time ever, requires resettlement agencies to obtain written consent from all localities and states in which they plan to resettle refugees. This could prevent refugees who have waited years from being reunited with their U.S.-based families, and communities from welcoming refugees, even if they have long-standing and successful resettlement programs.

On November 21, three faith-based resettlement agencies, HIAS, Church World Service (CWS), and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), filed a complaint against this new order, charging that it violates federal law and is yet another attempt by the Trump administration to restrict refugee resettlement in the United States.

WHAT:

The case being heard is:

HIAS v. Trump, brought by the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), on behalf of HIAS, Church World Service (CWS), and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS).

WHEN:

Arguments: Wednesday, January 8, 2020, 10 a.m. ET

Immediately following the arguments, (approximately 12:30 p.m. ET), attorneys and plaintiffs will give statements and respond to questions outside the courthouse.

WHO:

Linda Evarts, Litigation Staff Attorney, IRAP

Mark Hetfield, President and CEO, HIAS [HIAS Federal funding from recent Form 990: $19,138,737—ed]

Erol Kekic, Senior Vice President, CWS [CWS Federal funding: $39,424,221—ed]

Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO, LIRS [LIRS Federal funding: 45,316,561—ed]

WHERE:

United States District Court

District of Maryland

6500 Cherrywood Lane

Greenbelt, MD 20770

The case is in the same court where an Obama-judge slapped the President on the so-called travel ban, but the judge is not the same one who made that decision.

https://www.knkx.org/post/new-rulings-against-trumps-travel-ban-what-was-blocked-and-why

See the schedule here and note that the judge tomorrow is Peter Jo Messitte, a 79-year-old Clinton appointed judge.   The pious contractors are surely ‘praying’ for a quick decision with the hope that Trump’s refugee program reform can be frozen in its tracks and they can go back to business as usual—changing America by changing the people and being paid for it!

I’m sure this information was posted so they could make sure some press showed up and maybe a little gaggle of supporters holding ‘Refugees Welcome’ signs (supplied by the contractors!).

One more time—Any Republican governors who virtue-signaled and pandered to the contractors, rushing their consent, were downright dumb in my opinion.

I see that Alaska’s governor yesterday joined the bunch thumbing their noses at the President weeks before a flexible deadline—a deadline that could be moot depending on what happens with the contractors’ case tomorrow and in the coming weeks.

 

LOL! Now to my daily message for new readers….

***For new readers these (below) are the nine federally-funded refugee contractors that operate as a huge conveyor belt monopolizing all refugee placement in America.

A ‘religious’ message from CWS one of three federally funded contractors suing to stop the President’s effort to reform the UN-driven Refugee Admissions Program.

And, they do not limit their advocacy toward only legal immigration programs, but are heavily involved in supporting the lawlessness at our borders.

The question isn’t as much about refugees per se, but about who is running federal immigration policy now and into the future?  

(I plan to say this once a day from now on!)

I continue to argue that these nine contractors are the heart of America’s Open Borders movement and thus there can never be long-lasting reform of US immigration policy when these nine un-elected phony non-profits are paid by the taxpayers to work as community organizers pushing an open borders agenda.