FBI Director Comey: Syrian refugees cannot be thoroughly screened. Trey Gowdy are you listening?
This time he says it before the House Homeland Security Committee in a hearing yesterday, here.
Which reminds me—whatever happened to the House Judiciary Committee hearing oversight hearing on the Refugee Admissions Program that had been planned for a couple of weeks ago and abruptly postponed. Did they chicken out? Or are they now waiting for instructions from Rep. Paul Ryan who will be a disaster for us if elected Speaker?
When Rep. Trey Gowdy (chairman of the subcommittee responsible for the refugee program) gets past his big Hillary hearing today, he needs to turn his attention to the issue that will have a much greater impact on us than Hillary and Benghazi—that is changing America demographically forever!
Here is theDaily Caller on what Director Comey said yesterday:
FBI director James Comey said during a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing on Wednesday that the federal government does not have the ability to conduct thorough background checks on all of the 10,000 Syrian refugees that the Obama administration says will be allowed to come to the U.S.
“We can only query against that which we have collected,” Comey said in response to a line of questioning from Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson .
“And so if someone has never made a ripple in the pond in Syria in a way that would get their identity or their interest reflected in our database, we can query our database until the cows come home, but there will be nothing show up because we have no record of them.”
It has only been in the last year or so that we have been made aware that QUARTERLY CONSULTATIONS with community “stakeholders” were being held quietly, out of public view. In fact, I wondered why I hadn’t heard about them and now I know why!
The citizens of St. Cloud, MN, here and here, brought the issue of exclusion of taxpaying citizens from the meetings where the ‘non-profit’ refugee resettlement agency meets with local elected officials, fire/police, education, health departments etc. to assess how things are going with the refugees, and they discuss how many to bring in the upcoming year. Where are you Trey Gowdy? As the US State Department and its contractors work day and night to change the demographic makeup of American towns and cities IN SECRECY, where is your subcommittee in helping citizens get the information they are entitled to? Frankly, this is more important for the future of America than Hillary’s e-mails!
According to a State Department spokesman (unnamed!) doing a press briefing for reporters on September 11th, we learn that they have only been doing these QUARTERLY CONSULTATIONS since 2013! WTH! And, they are lying! “Private citizens” have not been welcome.
These agencies (‘non-profit’ resettlement subcontractors) work very hard to hold these meetings secretly and out of the view of local concerned citizens—the ultimate stakeholder, the taxpayer! Yet, we have a State Department official (why no name?) telling the mainstream media that private citizens can attend!
Why is the spokesman unnamed?
We are pleased to have [name and title withheld] with us today.Moving forward, [State Department Official] will be called State Department official for the purposes of this call. Again, this call is on background.
So much for Obama’s much ballyhooed transparency! Now here is what ‘name and title withheld’ told a special group of reporters:
In addition, starting about two years ago, I believe it was FY13, we required that all of our resettlement agencies conduct quarterly consultations with stakeholders in their communities. So that means that not just once a year when they’re preparing a proposal, but every quarter they have to reach out to a wide variety of stakeholders. And that would include other community organizations. That could include the police department, the school, the mayor’s office, the fire department, other agencies that have a stake in refugee resettlement, and private citizens can be invited as well. And they hold those quarterly conversations and that is taken into account when we are making placement plans for the entire year and throughout the year.
You know Larry Bartlett told Senator Sessions this basic untruthhere in the Senate hearing the week before last as well.
It gets worse!
We need lawyers on our team! Have they been breaking the law for 33 of 35 years? Or, have the states, which are supposed to prepare a plan every year and hold the meetings, not done their required duty to hold the quarterly meetings with communities?
And, if yours is one of 11 Wilson-Fish states***you don’t even get this much involvement in the planning.
Here are the federal regulations guiding the program (From CFR 400.5(h))
Provide that the State will, unless exempted from this requirement by the Director, assure that meetings are convened, not less often than quarterly, whereby representatives of local resettlement agencies, local community service agencies, and other agencies that serve refugees meet with representatives of State and local governments to plan and coordinate the appropriate placement of refugees in advance of the refugees’ arrival.
What should you do now?
So, for all of you working in ‘Pockets of Resistance’(and others too!). Go here, and call the closest refugee resettlement office near you and tell them you want a schedule for the upcoming quarterly consultation! Ask them as well for the FY2016 R & P Abstract which will tell you their plans for your town/city this year. (They have been instructed by their lobbying arm in Washington, RCUSA, to deny you those, but keep asking).
At the same time, go here, and call your State Refugee Coordinators office and ask for the quarterly consultation schedule for your city and/or for the whole state. Ask the coordinator for the FY2016 Abstracts as well (for your individual city) or for every community in the state! The State Coordinator must have approved it!
Let me know what response you get and we will start listing the agencies that refuse your requests for admission to quarterly consultations and for the R & P Abstract.We will build a case.
And, hey, Trey Gowdy where are you?Where is your hearing?
I would like you to make those calls and report the results to me. I am going to post the responses on these pages. (I know some of you have done this already, but I didn’t log your information when you were stonewalled.) Please put “report on calls” in the subject line when writing to me at RefugeeWatcher@gmail.com so I don’t miss your e-mail.
*** Wilson-Fish states where your state elected officials have virtually no say (and where you should be demanding your state get out of Wilson-Fish!): Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee and Vermont. Call the agencies in those states too. ***Update***
There are 12 Wilson-Fish states: Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee and Vermont.
Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, is also a contender for the Republican nomination for President. He joins Far Left Senator Patrick Leahy in his efforts to get the Syrians in here faster.
Every time I see Graham, a proud member of the Gang of Eight on amnesty two years ago, I wonder whether Graham influences Rep. Trey Gowdy. Does Gowdy share Graham’s position on immigration? Does Graham keep a tight rein on Gowdy? Did either of them hear what the FBI said this week? https://refugeeresettlementwatch.org/2015/10/10/fbi-director-confirms-again-that-they-cant-thoroughly-screen-syrians-entering-the-us/ How closely does Graham monitor the activities of South Carolina Rep. Gowdy who has been dragging his feet on holding any hearing on the Refugee Admissions Program in the subcommittee (which he chairs!) responsible for Refugee Program oversight?
(A hearing was scheduled and postponed in the full House Judiciary Committee last week, but Gowdy, as subcommittee chairman, has been silent, and as such a disappointment, on the Syrian refugee question. If anyone has seen Gowdy raise concerns about bringing Syrians to America and his state, please send a news report my way and I will stand corrected.)
And, Mr. Gowdy, how about a hearing on the Babin billthat has 22 co-sponsors as of this writing? Gowdy is not one of them!
I digress, here is the news about Lindsey Graham and his pal Leahy.
From The Hill (hat tip: Joanne). Emphasis is mine:
A bipartisan pair of senators — including one presidential candidate — is pushing forward with an emergency spending bill to help strengthen the administration’s ability to combat the Syrian refugee crisis.
Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) have rolled out legislation that would provide an extra $1 billion in emergency funding, mandating that the White House tell Congress within 45 days how it will use the money.
[….]
Dozens of Senate Democrats backed a letter from Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) [Hey, does Chris Murphy do the bidding of CAIR-CT too?—ed] earlier this week calling for an emergency spending bill. That letter was sent to Leahy and Graham, as well as Sens. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), the top two members on the Appropriations Committee. [Mikulski here—ed]
But FBI Director James Comey said Thursday that there are “gaps” in the screening process for bringing Syrians into the United States.
“There is risk associated of bringing anybody in from the outside, but specifically from a conflict zone like that,” he told members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Graham, who is running for president, quickly came out in support of accepting more Syrian refugees after a photo of a drowned Syrian child went viral and sparked international outrage earlier this year. [He fell for the propaganda photo!—ed]
His position pits him against not only many of his Republican colleagues, but also other 2016 presidential contenders. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who is also running for president, said earlier this week that President Obama’s plan to accept additional Syrian refugees was “nothing short of crazy.”
The Graham-Leahy bill also requires that Secretary of State John Kerry describe what security vetting refugees would have to undergo before being accepted into the country. [We already know they can’t screen the Syrians!—ed]
How many times have you heard Lindsey Graham say on TV that “if we don’t do something over there, the terrorists will be here!” So how can he so blithely, in the face of testimony by the FBI director, still advocate getting more Syrians here faster?
The Senate hearing is today, see here.
And, next week the House of Representatives (full Judiciary Committee) will hold a hearing as well. As soon as we learn who the witnesses will be, we will let you know.
We have been telling you for weeks that the House and Senate Judiciary Committees are required to hold hearings on the Presidential Determinationfor the upcoming year, but as far as I can tell, no hearing has been held since 911. I think this year they could hardly shirk their duty because the public is up-in-arms over the plan to bring in thousands of not-properly-screened Syrians. Here is the entire press release, yesterday:
HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE TO EXAMINE SYRIAN REFUGEE CRISIS AND ITS IMPACT ON NATIONAL SECURITY OBAMA ADMINISTRATION PLANS TO RESETTLE 10,000 SYRIAN REFUGEES OVER THE COMING YEAR
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 30, 2015 CONTACT: Kathryn Rexrode or Jessica Collins, (202) 225-3951
Washington, D.C. – On Wednesday, October 7, 2015 at 10:30 a.m., the House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing to examine the Syrian refugee crisis and its impact on the security of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. President Obama has set the overall refugee ceiling at 85,000 for Fiscal Year 2016 and announced that the Administration will admit 10,000 Syrian refugees over the coming year.
Trey Gowdy is chairman of the Immigration and Border Control Subcommittee and represents Spartanburg, SC, a hotbed of opposition to refugee resettlement. We have maintained that he could be doing more to take a leadership role on the issue that we feel is the most important one this country faces since its founding. How many immigrants are we going to admit, and from where will they come, will determine America’s future. It would be nice to solve the Benghazi riddle, but it won’t make or break America—immigration very well could! BTW, Is Gowdy staying or leaving? See rumors here: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/255432-gowdys-office-denies-retirement
Below are statements from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) on this hearing. Witnesses for the hearing will be announced in the coming days.
Chairman Goodlatte: “While the United States already has the most generous refugee policies in the world, we must ensure that those seeking refuge in the United States do not pose national security threats to our nation. Recently, President Obama announced his intention to admit 10,000 Syrian refugees into the United States over the coming year. Because the Obama Administration has failed to address the rise of ISIS in Syria and the region, a humanitarian crisis has erupted. I am deeply concerned about the rise of ISIS, its threat to our national security, and the humanitarian crisis it has created.
“Next week, the House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the national security and public safety implications of our nation’s refugee program, including the Obama Administration’s plan to resettle thousands of Syrian refugees. As we examine the Administration’s plan and the overall refugee program, it’s important to remember that most refugees prefer to go back to their home countries and live in peace. The best way to stem this refugee crisis is to promote peace in the region and support humanitarian operations in affected countries and not try to bring more and more people to the United States.”
Subcommittee Chairman Gowdy: “America has a proud history of providing refuge for those who have been persecuted for their beliefs or otherwise face imminent harm. But we also have a duty to ensure the necessary background checks can be done to stop terrorists from exploiting Americans’ generosity and ruthlessly taking more innocent lives.
“The Administration has not provided certainty to Congress that they have a plan to prevent ISIS from infiltrating our country through the refugee program. Instead, the President’s idea of consultation is to decide to accept thousands of new refugees with or without congressional support. This displacement has occurred because of this Administration’s feckless foreign policy. Many of those displaced want a safe, secure homeland in or near the Middle East and that should be the priority. We look forward to examining our refugee program at this upcoming hearing.”
This hearing will take place in 2141 Rayburn House Office Building and will be webcast live at http://judiciary.house.gov/.Camera crews wishing to cover must be congressionally-credentialed and RSVP with the House Radio-TV Gallery at (202) 225-5214.
The Senate Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest, chaired by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) has announced a hearingon the President’s Refugee Resettlement plan for FY2016. As far as we have been able to determine this may be the first hearing since 9/11 on the Presidential Determination (prescribed in the Refugee Act of 1980). Sessions: Since 9/11, we have permanently resettled approximately 1.5 million migrants from Muslim nations inside the U.S.
The House and Senate Judiciary Committees have jurisdiction over the matter. Senator Grassley has spoken out strongly, but so far not a peep out of Chairman Goodlatte and Subcommittee Chairman Trey Gowdy*** over in the House.
Here is Senator Sessions’s excellent statement yesterday:
CHAIRMAN SESSIONS CHALLENGES ADMINISTRATION OVER PLANNED RESETTLEMENT OF 200,000 REFUGEES IN U.S.
WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Chairman of the Senate’s Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest, responded today to the announcement from Secretary John Kerry that the U.S would increase its intake of refugees over the next two years to nearly 200,000, in addition to the existing annual resettlement of asylees, illegal border-crossers, foreign workers, and global green card recipients:
“The U.S. has already taken in four times more immigrants than any other nation on Earth. Our foreign-born population share is set to break every known historical record. Since 9/11, we have permanently resettled approximately 1.5 million migrants from Muslim nations inside the U.S. Ninety percent of recent refugees from the Middle East living in our country are receiving food stamps and approximately 70 percent are receiving free healthcare and cash welfare. All of the nearly 200,000 refugees the Administration is planning to bring over the next two years would be entitled to these same benefits the moment they arrive. Since we are running huge deficits, every penny of these billions in costs will have to be borrowed and added to the debt. This refugee expansion would be in addition to the 1 million autopilot green cards handed out each year by the government to mostly low-wage migrants, including a large share from Middle Eastern nations.
“Our schools, job markets and public resources are already stretched too thin. And, even at current rates, we have no capacity to screen for extremist ideology, as we have seen with the surge of ISIS recruitment in Minnesota’s Somali refugee community.
“Middle Eastern nations must take the lead in resettling their region’s refugees. The goal of responsible refugee resettlement should be to relocate displaced persons as close to their homes as possible and to seek their return to their country of origin in more stable conditions. It has also been reported that 3 in 4 of those seeking relocation from the Middle East are not refugees but economic migrants from many countries.
“At bottom, it is not a sound policy to respond to the myriad problems in the Middle East by encouraging millions to abandon their home. Absorbing the region’s migrants is not a long-term strategy for stabilizing the region; instead, we should look soberly at our most recent actions in Libya, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere while encouraging migrant populations to remain in the region where they can contribute to social and political reforms.”
*** Perhaps I am reading too much into this, but it seems thatGowdy is supporting Marco Rubio’s bid for the Presidency and most of us can’t get past Senator Rubio’s championing of the Gang of Eight amnesty bill over in the Senate two years ago. Gowdy is also reportedly close to Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), also a Gang of Eight member, who does support the President’s bid to bring in thousands of Syrian (mostly Muslim) refugees to America.
