Betraying the voters who elected Donald Trump, the Department of State slipped the news to the contractors on Thursday who then slipped the news to the New York Timesjust as you were packing up for the beach or getting ready for a family barbecue using the federal government’s favorite holiday weekend trick to bury the news. Tillerson and Trump cave….
Forget everything I said in my post yesterday about Trump’s “average” admissions. If they do as they are now saying they will, Donald Trump will be responsible for one of six highest resettlement years since 9/11.*** Manchester here we come!
Here is the headline (Hat tip: Julia). Emphasis mine:
U.S. Quietly Lifts Limit on Number of Refugees Allowed In
WASHINGTON — Despite repeated efforts by President Trump to curtail refugee resettlements, the State Department this week quietly lifted the department’s restriction on the number of refugees allowed to enter the United States.
The result could be a near doubling of refugees entering the country, from about 830 people a week in the first three weeks of this month to well over 1,500 people per week by next month, according to refugee advocates.Tens of thousands of refugees are waiting to come to the United States.
The State Department’s decision was conveyed in an email on Thursday to the private agencies in countries around the world that help refugees manage the nearly two-year application process needed to enter the United States.
In her email, Jennifer L. Smith, a department official, wrote that the refugee groups could begin bringing people to the United States “unconstrained by the weekly quotas that were in place.”
[….]
Refugee groups now predict that entries into the United States could increase so rapidly that the total number of refugees admitted by Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year, could exceed 70,000.
Refugee advocates were delighted by the State Department’s decision.
“This is long overdue, but we’re very happy,” said Mark Hetfield, president and chief executive of HIAS, an immigrant aid society.
Continue reading hereas the contractors say they are worried for next year. Oh, sure they are. Bottomline is that it appears that the REPUBLICAN Congress (never forget they want to keep big business donors happy by providing a steady supply of cheap labor) appropriated gobs of money for refugee resettlement! And, the Trump Administration (remember Trump campaigned with talk of a moratorium on refugee resettlement) appears to have no fight left in them on this issue (other issues too!).
***Here are the refugee admissions since 9/11(those in red exceed Trump’s projected 70,000). Bush had only 2 years in excess of 70,000 and Obama had 3 of his 8 years higher than 70,000.
2001: 87,259 (this year’s number would have been proposed by Clinton in the fall of 2000)
Sorry to all of you who follow RRW regularly to have to keep repeating myself, but I want to blow a gasket every time I see a story about “plummeting” refugee admission numbers.
The story that steamed me this morning is one Drudge has listed (what is going on with Drudge, losing his mojo?).
Here is the story from Pew(I know what Pew is!) with this blaring headline:
Pew: Refugee arrivals in U.S. decline sharply as world crisis grows
What Pew is doing in its story (besides skewing the news against Trump), read it yourself, is comparing October FY17 (9,945) the first month of this fiscal year when Obama was pouring refugees in at an unheard of rate to April FY17 (3,316) when frankly Trump is bringing in a moderate number of refugees.
Look at this chart (again!) (from Wrapsnet):
After you note that October FY17 was the largest first month (by far) of any fiscal year in the last eleven, then take note that Trump’s April (3,316) is larger than Bush’s April 2007 (2,060) or even Obama’s April 2011 (2,190). So what the h*** are they talking about! I don’t recall any story in 2011 bashing Obama for his huge drop from October FY11 to April FY11!
I also had a chuckle as I read the Pew story about how the numbers are plummeting in Texas, but not a mention that the state withdrew from the program and that although it is up and running now (without the state government), the transition to the Wilson-Fish program did cause a slight slowdown. Texas is still the number 2 state behind California for refugee admissions this year.
Remember that when Trump came in to office he wanted a MORATORIUM on refugee resettlement for 4 months while they reviewed the program for security concerns and, now long-forgotten, they wanted to look into the issue of notification to communities. That would have caused “plummeting” admission numbers.
With no talk of reforming the program anywhere in sight, Trump is now on schedule to admit to the US somewhere around 60,000 refugees this year. Compare that to Bush in 2007 and Obama in 2011 and 2012—all three years under 60,000!
Endnote: As of today we are at 45,732 for this fiscal year. See my right hand sidebar where I am tracking the numbers every few days.
And check out the fact that they have removed the CEILING (which is not a target!) from the chart for this year—the Obama dream number for FY17 of 110,000 has been removed. (See that Obama never had a ceiling that high for his previous 7 years! Why was that?)
“This is the worst deal ever,” Trump told Turnbull in the call, adding that the country was trying to send the “next Boston bombers” into the US. (February 1, 2017)
Sometimes I wonder if the real Donald Trump was somehow swapped for a fake Donald shortly after getting in to the White House. Is the real Donald Trump, who knew this was a “dumb deal,” being kept behind bars in the White House basement while the fake Donald runs the country?
His instincts on February first (12 days after reaching the Oval Office) were right-on (see here). What happened to him?
The (Obama!) deal, for the US to take over 1,000 of Australia’s detained (mostly Muslim) ILLEGAL ALIENS off their hands, transform them in to refugees, place them quietly in US towns and cities and put them on welfare in exchange for Australia to take some not-yet-determined number of Central Americans (safely living in Central America) in exchange, is nuts. All that is to save Turnbull’s political skin!
See my extensive archive on the Australia deal by clicking here.
Here is news being peddled by Reutersthat the Trump interviews constitute the “extreme vetting” that the real Donald Trump promised us.
Clearly the interviewers know nothing about Islam (most of those detained in Australia offshore camps are from Muslim countries***). Again, these are illegal aliens who attempted to get to Australia by boat. Legitimate asylum seekers, who tried to get to Australia, are Australia’s problem!
There is no way to check the ‘stories’ provided to interviewers with functioning governments in most of these countries.
Do our interviewers even know that there is such a thing as Taqiyya (the Islamic permission to lie to infidels).
From Reuters:
U.S. Homeland Security officials have begun “extreme vetting” interviews at Australia’s offshore detention centers, two sources at the camps told Reuters on Tuesday, as Washington honors a refugee swap that U.S. President Donald Trump had called “a dumb deal”. [“Refugee” swap! Neither are legitimate refugees—ed]
The Trump administration said last month the agreement to offer refuge to up to 1,250 asylum seekers in the centers would progress on condition that refugees satisfied strict checks.
Coming to a town near you! ‘Refugees’ on Nauru! LOL! One of my readers suggested they all be resettled in Hawaii!
In exchange, Australia has pledged to take Central American refugees from a center in Costa Rica, where the United States has expanded intake in recent years, under the deal struck with former President Barack Obama.
The first security interviews finished last week at Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island detention center, two refugees who went through the process told Reuters.
[….]
The refugees told Reuters that interviews began with an oath to God [which god?—ed] to tell the truth and then proceeded for as long as six hours, with in-depth questions on associates, family, friends and any interactions with the Islamic State militant group.
What the heck! Does anyone believe they would tell the truth if they had had an interaction with ISIS!
“They asked about why I fled my home, why I sought asylum in Australia,” said one refugee who declined to be named, fearing it could jeopardize his application for U.S. resettlement.
The security interviews are the last stage of U.S. consideration of applicants.
[….]
A decision on the fate of the first 70 people interviewed is expected to be reached within the next month….
And, when the first Australian-rejected migrants get to America this will no longer be Obama’s “dumb deal.” It will be Trump’s “dumb deal” as I said here on Wednesday.
There is more at Reuters, click here to continue reading.
*** The illegal aliens we are interviewing at Australian off-shore detention facilities are from the following countries: Iran, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, Sudan and Stateless (probably Rohingya Muslims from Burma).
As I said yesterday, although Trump’s proposed FY18 Budget contains (we are told) enough money for as many as 50,000 refugees for FY18, the refugee resettlement contractors are pushing Congress for more. The President has the power to set the refugee admissions ceiling for the upcoming year (in “consultation” with Congress), and that is normally done in September.
But, it appears to me that the contractors think they have a chance to move the Republican Congress to appropriate enough money for 75,000 refugees in FY18 and by doing that essentially steal the power the President has under the Refugee Act of 1980 to set the ceiling for the upcoming year. (Always remember RINOs want cheap immigrant laborers for their business donors!)
Here is an alert I received yesterday. Of course their language is unnecessarily alarmist as we are no longer debating Trump’s original moratorium vs. some number of refugees, the debate is now simply over how many!
That second link directs readers to this page which begins (under this banner):
HIAS:
In the midst of the largest refugee crisis in recorded history, with over 65 million people displaced around the world, the U.S. government must do more—not less—to help refugees.
Please take a minute to urge your elected officials to fund a humanitarian response that demonstrates America’s global leadership and honors our values. We need to make sure Congress provides adequate funding for refugees and allows organizations like HIAS to continue the important work of helping refugees here and abroad.
Then HIAS supplies their supporters with a ready-made letter to Congress.
I cannot overemphasize the fact that the refugee contractors understand the appropriations process in Washington (their financial lives depend on it!), but that citizens concerned with the secret placement of third worlders in to your towns and cities don’t understand it. And, we definitely don’t have lobbyists (as HIAS does) in Washington to help get your message to your representatives. As I have said repeatedly, the entire UN/US Refugee Admissions Program should be scrapped and if it is in our interest to take some refugees, a new law should be written. Sadly, after encouraging us with MORATORIUM language, there is no sign that the Trump team will lead any major reform. The battle is being framed simply around numbers (in a range of 50,000-75,000).
The President’s budget for next year is out, but I have to be completely honest with you, going through these numbers is not my thing!
And, consider that it is Congress that will in reality set the agenda and budget for refugee admissions by how much money they are sending to the program and ultimately out to the federal resettlement contractors.
In searching around this morning, I’ve found several indicators of what Trump might do, what he has done, what the budget might dictate, and how the contractors are reacting, and I will leave it to you (who have more patience to wade through numbers than I) to analyze the numbers. Just so you know, as of today (5/24/2017), note (from Wrapsnet) that Trump is now at 45,172 admitted refugees for this fiscal year (FY2017 ends on September 30th). (Average refugee admissions for the last ten years is around in the low 60,000s.)
Resettlement contractors happy with FY17 budget!
I missed this: The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society was very happy with the Continuing Budget for the present fiscal year. See here earlier this month:
Today (May 5) President Trump signed into law a $1.1 trillion government spending bill to keep the government running through September 30, the end of the current fiscal year.
Sigh of relief! Maybe no salary cuts for the top executives? https://refugeeresettlementwatch.org/2016/11/13/hebrew-immigrant-aid-society-lectures-trump-never-mentions-its-pecuniary-interest-in-refugees/
Within that massive bill are a few items of particular importance for refugees who, after fleeing war and persecution, have either found safety abroad or are beginning new lives in the United States.
The spending bill funds the Office of Refugee Resettlement at a level equal to last fiscal year.ORR oversees the domestic side of U.S. resettlement and facilitates refugees’ integration and economic success in this country. This funding will allow ORR and its partner agencies (including HIAS) to continue providing services for refugees, asylees, unaccompanied refugee and asylum seeker children, Cuban and Haitian entrants, and Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa recipients.
Also included is $3.06 billion for Migration Refugee Assistance, which is $99 million more than the Trump administration requested.
This funding will enable the U.S. State Department to provide humanitarian aid to refugees overseas as well as resettle refugees in the United States.
The bill also extends the Lautenberg Amendment, which ensures a safe means of exit for religious minorities from Iran and the former Soviet Union who are approved to come to the United States. [Bunch of hypocrites! They say Trump can’t legally select Christians over Muslims, but they have supported choosing Jews as a priority from Iran and Russia for decades!—ed]
This funding agreement, which originated in the House of Representatives and passed both chambers of Congress before it reached the President’s desk for signature, ensures that the U.S. refugee resettlement program will be sufficiently funded for the remainder of this fiscal year.
This means that communities in states across the country will be able to continue doing what they already do so well every day: welcoming newly arrived refugee families and helping them to integrate by providing a strong start in their new home.
Today marks a victory for our partners in Washington and around the country, who have been advocating for continued U.S. support for welcoming and protecting refugees. But there is still so much more we can and should be doing.
We continue to urge the Trump Administration to resettle at least 75,000 refugees this fiscal year.
That was May 5th. They have friends in the Republican Congress!
A couple of days ago (May 22nd), the President unveiled his FY18 budget and here at the Daily Caller we learn that it includes enough funding for 50,000 refugees for FY18 (begins September 30th, 2017), but just like the CR discussed above, Congress can, and likely will, add more money for MORE refugees! Why would Republicans who control Congress want more refugees? That is easy: cheap immigrant labor for their big business donors and for the Chamber of Commerce!
The markers are being laid down!
Trump wants 50,000 and they want 75,000 for FY18!
Here is what the refugee industry is saying about this budget, from their lobbying arm in DC yesterday—the Refugee Council USA:
WASHINGTON, DC—Refugee Council USA (RCUSA), a coalition of 24 U.S.-based non-governmental organizations*** dedicated to refugee protection, urges Congress to fund refugee programs at levels that reflect the reality that the world is currently experiencing the worst refugee crisis since World War II. The last thing that the United States should do during a time of historic refugee crises is to cut lifesaving refugee budget accounts.
The lobbying arm of the refugee industry is RCUSA. Its present chair is a Dutch citizen, Hans van de Weerd, lecturing us about American values. Bio: http://www.rcusa.org/staff/ Photo twitter: https://twitter.com/hansvandeweerd
“Now more than ever, we must allocate funding to programs that align with our American values of freedom, compassion and opportunity,” Hans van de Weerd, Chair of RCUSA, said. “The United States has historically been a global refugee protection leader, both through strong support for refugees overseas, as well as through funding a robust domestic refugee resettlement program. We can, and must, continue to do both. During this challenging and tumultuous time, we urge the Committees on Appropriations to demonstrate support for America’s leadership in the world and our longstanding tradition of welcome by robustly funding these important humanitarian accounts during the FY 2018 appropriations process.”
[You see, they know they can get to Congress even if Trump has slightly reduced the numbers—ed]
RCUSA is requesting that at least 75,000 refugees be resettled in FY18, and believes that the Administration’s budget proposal that would support the resettlement of 50,000 is inadequate and an abdication of U.S. leadership.
RCUSA is advocating for a continuance of FY17 funding levels, and therefore recommends funding of $1.688 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services’ Refugee and Entrant Assistance (REA) account. The REA account, which funds the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), is a crucial component of fostering refugee integration and self-sufficiency. In addition to providing services to resettled refugees, ORR is tasked with implementing social services for unaccompanied minors, asylees, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Special Immigrant Visa holders, victims of human trafficking, and survivors of torture. The President’s budget proposes a 31% cut to refugee services that help refugees achieve long-term integration and economic success and assist communities and local partners in welcoming new Americans. RCUSA also recommends $3.604 billion in funding for the Department of State’s Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) account. The MRA account provides overseas assistance to displaced refugees, supports admissions to the U.S. of the most vulnerable refugees, and funds lifesaving services in humanitarian emergencies.
[….]
RCUSA also strongly opposes the president’s proposal to eliminate the Department of State’s Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance (ERMA) account, which for example, in recent years has provided stabilizing assistance to countries of first asylum that have given safety to South Sudanese and Syrian refugees. RCUSA urges a continued funding level of $50 million for this account in FY 2018.
I’ve included that last paragraph above because this ERMA fund is nothing to fight about. It is no great shakes for Trump to have omitted funding for it. Yes, it saves US taxpayers some money, but readers in the past have confused it with money used to bring refugees to America. It is for assistance abroad and not for resettlement here, so don’t let Trump people tell you this is some sort of victory. The battle lines are shaping up and it is pretty clear that the refugee industry is going to the Republican Congress to stop the President from reducing numbers to 50,000, a number that we think is outrageously high for a President who campaigned on stopping the program, at least temporarily, all together.
Sadly, instead of a fight about abolishing or reforming the UN/US Refugee Admissions Program (and getting the fraud out of it!) it sure looks likes it is going to be a fight simply over numbers—50,000, 75,000, or somewhere in between. At this stage it appears that the Trump Administration hasn’t any fight left for this issue.
***Go here to see all members of the Refugee Council USA. All nine federal resettlement contractors are a part of this lobbying office. I suppose one could look at this 75,000 demand as a comedown for them. In August of 2016 they urged Obama to set the ceiling at 200,000, see here. But, again, they are always pushing, pushing and pushing.
For new readers, the nine federal refugee contractors you pay to bring refugees to your towns and cities:
