I’m getting weary of seeing the SAME story everywhere—Iraqi refugees who helped America, arriving in the US, not finding work, becoming desperate, fearing eviction with some wanting to go home to the Middle East. The solution is always the same, reform the Refugee Resettlement Program with more taxpayer funding. Either reporters are lemmings (always a possibility) or this is a well-oiled PR campaign to use Iraqis as ‘poster children’ for a taxpayer bail-out of the volags. Volags for new readers are supposedly voluntary agencies that have federal contracts to resettle refugees—it’s big business, it is corporate humanitarianism!
The CNN story from Monday starts out with the sad story of an Iraqi woman who helped the US government in Iraq but now can’t find work as a refugee here. I’ve completely lost track but it’s probably our 25th such story.
The Gang is all here! I laughed when I read this because CNN managed to get in 6 of the Top Ten contractors (volags) for a mention. Surprise! They all say the same thing—give us more tax money! Incidentally all of those individuals quoted below make 6-figure salaries.
“It’s the most challenging time I’ve seen and I’ve been doing this work for 25 years,” said Robert J. Carey, vice president of resettlement and migration policy at the International Rescue Committee, one of several nonprofit organizations that the U.S. government pays to resettle refugees.
Lavinia Limon, president and chief executive officer of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, says, “it’s a significant problem.”
“All refugees are required to become self-sufficient in a very fast time period. Our program is designed with that in mind. There isn’t a long-term basis of support,” said Anastasia Brown, director of refugee programs for the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops. “What we have right now is a situation where it’s becoming more and more difficult to find employment in a very short time period.”
[….]
Three agencies — Church World Service, Episcopal Migration Ministries, and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service — said in a recent statement that “the recession is making it harder for refugee newcomers to find jobs within 180 days of arrival as the program prescribes.”
Please make a special note of the fact that 4 of the 6 mentioned above are groups that are part of the “religious left” that got involved in lobbying on the Amnesty for illegal aliens fight in 2007. Just think about it, from Planned Parenthood, to ACORN, to these volags your tax dollars are supporting political causes. Can you imagine the uproar if conservative groups like the Heritage Foundation or groups working to close the borders and fighting Amnesty, like NumbersUSA, were on the taxpayer dole!
Poor babies! If they have to ask for more private charitable giving for refugees—it might actually involve some work.
The State Department allocation for living expenses per refugee on arrival to the country is $450, a sum the department calls “modest.” [Edit: it is really $900 they receive but the volag pockets half for ‘overhead’]. Individual refugees also are eligible to get eight months of cash assistance and medical assistance under the HHS’ Office of Refugee Resettlement.
Depending on states’ eligibility requirements, refugee families could be eligible for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and Medicaid. State governments stipulate welfare benefit cash levels. There are five years’ worth of social services, such as English language instruction. [What about Americans struggling to find work, do they get all this?]
Refugee agencies across America pursue various state and federal programs that can help newcomers stay afloat, but they say they rely more and more on private donations to help provide food, clothing, money and furniture. That increasing reliance on community support shows that the U.S. program for resettling refugees needs reform, resettlement agencies argue. [Edit: Yes, more money = reform, nevermind that this program is a mess.]
Then here is the topper!
The public-private partnership that has been the “genius” of the U.S. program has “fallen out of balance,” with the private sector is bearing much of the cost, these agencies say.
The only “genius” involved was figuring out how to funnel taxpayer money to completely unaccountable LEFTWING political groups to quietly flood America with third worlders who could be relied upon to continue the demand for welfare assistance and to vote Democratic. The immigrants are just pawns that these groups can leave in a lurch as we are seeing across America right now—get them in the country but then walk away. There can be no other rational explanation for lobbying for more refugees and then not caring for them.
The reason they can’t find enough private support—why finding it is such hard work— is because there is not a great clamor by Americans to bring more poverty into America especially if they have to use their own hard-earned money to do it.
Damn it! Refugee advocates, if you want to feel good, adopt a child or sponsor a family privately, that is true charity. It is in my opinion frankly evil to expect others to help you feel good about yourself.
And, “genius” because the way the program is structured there is virtually no accountability to you who are paying for it. These volags (as supposed non-profits) answer to no one, except occasionally to the State Department but only after they publically screw up.
They talk about reform, but the only reform they want is more of your money with no accountability.
Readers: It is my view that funding of LEFTWING SOCIALIST CAUSES by the taxpayer is one of the greatest scams undermining our culture, our society, and our government, but it is so deep and so broad only a catastrophic collapse of the federal government could halt it now. And, the way things are going, that could happen!