The United States has committed to accepting 10,000 immigrants from Syria. That’s far less than the European nations are faced with, but the attack on Paris has many Americans calling for a halt to that program. To be sure, most of the immigrants are fleeing ISIS, but ISIS has boasted that it will mingle with the immigrants as a way to invade the west. Stringent screening is supposedly in place in the U.S., but people are nervous.
House Speaker Paul Ryan has called for a “pause” in the settlement of refugees here. The GOP presidential candidates are agreeing (except for Jeb Bush). Twenty-six mostly Republican governors have asked that Syrian refugees not be settled in their states (though they have no authority to stop it). Republican congressmen are introducing bills to stop the immigration. One idea being put forward is to settle only Christians, who certainly are fleeing persecution, but the administration is indignant at the prospect of “religious tests.”
What is your opinion? Are Republicans falling into the Democrats’ stereotype that they are mean and lacking in compassion? Or are their proposals simple prudence? What do we Christians do with the teachings in Scripture that we should welcome “the aliens”? Does that apply here?From Paris attacks reshape U.S. debate on immigration, security | Reuters:
U.S. lawmakers called on Tuesday for even tighter scrutiny of Syrian refugees fleeing to the United States as last week’s deadly Paris attacks recast America’s debate over immigration and national security, prompting a sharp rebuke from President Barack Obama, who said attempts to block entry were “offensive and contrary to American values”.
Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives, worried about Islamist attacks following Friday’s killings of 129 people in France, threatened to suspend the Obama administration’s efforts to allow 10,000 more Syrian refugees into the country. . . .
[House Speaker Paul] Ryan called for a pause in Obama’s program, announced in September, to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees in a year. The number of Syrians destined for the United States is low compared with figures in European countries such as Germany.
The issue has challenged America’s image of itself as a nation that welcomes downtrodden newcomers, with some lawmakers suggesting all Syrians should be barred, or that Christian Syrians should be favored over Muslims.
Obama, speaking on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Manila early on Wednesday, accused politicians at home of trying to score political points. . . .
Obama said refugees are screened for 18 to 24 months before being cleared to enter the United States, with the intelligence community fully vetting applicants.
“When candidates say we should not admit 3-year-old orphans, that’s political posturing. When individuals say we should have religious tests, and only Christians, proven Christians, should be allowed, that’s offensive and contrary to American values.”
[Keep reading. . .]
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