Florida has for decades been one of the top ten resettlement states in the nation, and so, just like Texas, has done more than its fair share of admitting impoverished third worlders and seeing to their (expensive) needs.
Now that Texas Governor Greg Abbott (read that story and send thanks to the governor) says he wants to take a breather from primary resettlement, albeit for only a few months this year (from June to September), the nine federal refugee contractors*** have turned their guns on Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Will Florida Governor support the President’s efforts to rein-in the UN-driven Refugee Resettlement Program or cave like the other pandering (to the Left) Republican governors?
The contractors already have notches in their belts for 19 Republican governorswho foolishly jumped, long before they needed to, and begged the US State Department for more refugees from Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
When I sawthis article from Miami New Times, I laughed out loud!
Look who is trying to put the screws to the governor—none other than the “ministry” as the New Times calls them—Church World Service.
It is a long story for another day, but RRW exists because of Church World Service’s “ministry.”
(emphasis below is mine)
Florida Among Small Minority of States That Haven’t Agreed to Accept Refugees
The future of refugee resettlement in Florida hangs by a thread as Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis remains silent days before a crucial January 21 funding deadline.
Under an executive order signed in September by President Donald Trump, states and localities may choose whether to receive refugees in 2020. DeSantis is one of a shrinking number of holdouts: Only seven other states, six of them led by Republican governors, have yet to offer to accept more refugees, according to the resettlement agency Church World Service. Only one state, Texas, has declined to admit new refugees.
“Florida has historically been one of the most important states when it comes to refugee resettlement,” says Jen Smyers, policy and advocacy director for Church World Service’s immigration and refugee program. “It would be tragic for Florida to stop resettlement and would have serious implications for refugees already in the state.”
It isn’t tragic for Florida! It is tragic for Church World Service because they stand to lose millions of dollars!
I must say we are now, after more than a decade of watching, seeing media reports about how this whole business of refugee resettlement revolves around these nine federal profiteers getting their (our!) MONEY!
A decision by DeSantis to cut off refugee resettlement would also effectively preclude Florida resettlement agencies from qualifying for large amounts of federal funding. According to Smyers, agencies such as Church World Service depend on grants tied to resettlement work to keep the lights on and to fund many key services for refugees already in the state, including cash and medical assistance, English-language classes, and job training. If those federal dollars dry up, Smyers says, Church World Service could be forced to shutter its offices in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties.
To “keep the lights on” and pay the Reverend’s annual salary of over $300,000 (twice what the governor of Florida earns), so he can be arrested from time to time? See details of CWS income and McCullough’s compensation here.
Pay attention to this next paragraph. The lobbying pressure from the contractors is about their ability to get their MONEY in a timely manner!
The Reverend McCullough was arrested in 2014 protesting OBAMA’s deportation policies. The good Reverend earned over $1 million in salary and benefits in the last 4 years—good work if you can get it!
Technically speaking, DeSantis could make a decision anytime before new federal contracts go into effect June 1.
However, agencies such as Church World Service have until only January 21 to submit their funding proposals to the U.S. Department of State along with any letters of consent. In that sense, no decision from DeSantis could choosing to block resettlement.
[….]
Trump’s executive order also offered localities the opportunity to provide or decline consent to continued resettlement. However, the governor’s decision would likely take precedence.
If the governor says yes, individual counties are also required to say yes to the US State Department if they want refugees. See the Funding Guidance(the rules for the Executive Order).
*** 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’s “ministry!” CWS is 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?
Go here to see that the nine contractors sucked down over $3 BILLION in federal grants in the last 11 years.
(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.
I’ve told readers innumerable times that Texas has carried the weight of the most refugees resettled in any state for years, and now given a chance by the President to take a break—Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said enough is enough!
Texas Governor Greg Abbott is the first Republican to support the President’s effort to reform the UN/US Refugee Admissions Program.
His action is incredibly brave in light of the fact that 18 of his fellow REPUBLICAN governors have already caved in to the pressure of the Leftwing Open Borders Inc. and are now facing stiff criticism by a heretofore silent majority of citizens in their states who also agree that enough is enough.
(Big question now is what about Florida and Georgia, the two remaining states which have carried excessively large burdens handed to them by the UN and the US State Department for decades!)
***Update*** All Texas patriots should be sure to thank the governor! He will be getting some mean criticism from the Left!
According to a letter sent today to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that was just obtained by The Daily Wire, Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has announced Texas’s refusal to accept any additional refugees for fiscal year (FY) 2020.The letter was prompted by Executive Order 13888, on “Enhancing State and Local Involvement in Refugee Resettlement,” which was issued by President Donald Trump on September 26, 2019.
[….]
“Texas is one of the most welcoming states for refugees seeking to escape dangers abroad,” Abbott begins. “Since FY 2010, more refugees have been received in Texas than in any other state. In fact, over that decade, roughly 10% of all refugees resettled in the United States have been placed in Texas. Even today, the process of resettling continues for many of these refugees.”
“In addition to accepting refugees all these years, Texas has been left by Congress to deal with disproportionate migration issues resulting from a broken federal immigration system,” the governor continues.
“In May 2019, for example, around 100,000 migrants were apprehended crossing this state’s southern border. In June 2019, individuals from 52 different countries were apprehended here. And in FY 2018, the apprehensions included citizens from disparate countries like China, Iran, Kenya, Russia, and Tonga. Texas continues to have to deal with the consequences of an immigration system that Congress has failed to fix.”
“At this time, the state and non-profit organizations have a responsibility to dedicate available resources to those who are already here, including refugees, migrants, and the homeless — indeed, all Texans,” the Republican writes in his denouement. “As a result, Texas cannot consent to initial refugee resettlement for FY2020. This decision does not deny any refugee access to the United States. Nor does it preclude a refugee from later coming to Texas after initially settling in another state.”
“Texas has carried more than its share in assisting the refugee resettlement process and appreciates that other states are available to help with these efforts,” Abbott concludes.
Abbott’s bold stand will please immigration hawks, who have long sounded the alarm on America’s shoddy, loophole-ridden refugee system and our wholly inadequate vetting capabilities for prospective refugees.
[….]
Abbott’s move also follows closely on the heels of at least 15 separate Republican governors [actually 18 caved, see below—ed] who have all affirmatively signed onto more refugee resettlement in their states in the aftermath of Executive Order 13888. Immigration hawk Daniel Horowitz recently excoriated these governors at Conservative Review: “Except for New England, these are all states carried by Trump, some of them by a very wide margin. Trump won every single county in West Virginia and Oklahoma, for example. Why are conservatives with platforms not talking about this? … Who needs George Soros when you have GOP governors endorsed by Trump doing his bidding, along with the help of so-called evangelical groups?”
Governor Abbott will take no shortage of heat for this move, even within the still-reliably Republican Lone Star State. But he should rest well at night, for he has done the right thing for his state.
See which Republican Governors virtue-signaled to Open Borders Inc. and the Refugee Contractors! An X means that the governor has said, yes, sure send us more poor people to take care of we have run out of vulnerable Americans!
You should know that Wyoming has never participated in the program that was supposed to be VOLUNTARY in the first place, so Texas is just asserting a prerogative that was available when the law was passed in 1980! Kennedy, Biden and Jimmy Carter all asserted it was voluntary when they pushed it through!
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 grabsas 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.
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 theBemidji 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.
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 complaintagainst 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 [HIASFederal funding from recent Form 990: $19,138,737—ed]
Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO, LIRS [LIRSFederal 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.
See theschedule hereand 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!).
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.
