Thanksgiving Day Appeal from President Obama for Syrian Refugees

During his weekly radio address, U.S. President Obama gave a Thanksgiving Day appeal to the nation to accept Syrian refugees, saying that American generosity is what makes the United States a great nation. The president had committed to accept an additional 10,000 refugees from Syria this year and he reminded the people that the policy is part of the country’s tradition. 

Appeal

In his radio address the president said that the world still has many pilgrims, even after the Mayflower sailed to the America about four hundred years ago. He added that these pilgrims just want to be given a chance to have a better and safer future for their families and themselves and that giving them that chance is the essence of America. According to the president, he had received emails and letters a few weeks back from generous Americans who showed willingness to open their homes to Syrian refugees.

Heavy criticism

His plan to accept more Syrian refugees had been under heavy criticism from members of Congress, and after the crisis in Paris, had become a major part of the campaign rhetoric of many presidential candidates. Using homeland security as their main point, some Congress members wanted legislation that will tighten further the conditions in which refugees could be admitted to the country.

President Obama on the other hand said that the highest security checks are already in place through which each refugee must pass before they are allowed to set foot on American soil. He added that it had been in place long before the attack in Paris happened and the system is still very much in place. However, he said that what happened in Paris have not detracted many Americans to accept refugees if they are allowed to.

No legal authority

In a related news, President Obama on Wednesday said that the states have no legal authority to refuse refugee admittance, and warned that they could be subjected to enforcement action should they fail to comply. The letter, which came from the office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) stated that state resettlement officials must not deny services and benefits to refugees (who meet eligibility requirements) based on their religion or country of origin and failure to do so could result in enforcement action which could either be suspension or termination.

Response from dissent

The letter was in response to the announcement made by over 24 governors, most of them Republicans, who said that they would reject efforts to resettle refugees coming from Syria in their states due to the November 13 incident in Paris and due to fear that the resettlement could be exploited in order for militant groups to enter the U.S.

In the meantime, the House have approved a bill that would improve the screening process for Syrian and Iraqi refugees, which entails intensive background checks of every refugee coming from these two countries before they could be accepted into the country as well as a certification that the individual does not pose a threat to anyone or any place in the U.S. The approval process is very thorough and would take about two years to complete, according to the administration.

Image credit: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite