Washington – The head of the State Department’s refugee bureau told a congressional panel on Thursday that Syrians trying to enter the United States pose “less of a threat” than other populations, sparking a harsh exchange with a Republican lawmaker.
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Asked whether the U.S. government tracks Syrian refugees once they are in the country, Anne Richard, assistant secretary of state for population, refugees and migration, said authorities track them for three months after arrival.
“They’re not treated differently than other refugees. Syrians are less of a threat, actually, because they’ve fled their country. They’ve voted with their feet,” Richard said.
“Let me stop you there real quick,” Republican Representative Lamar Smith of Texas interrupted.
He cited earlier testimony from FBI Director James Comey that he was worried about not having enough information on the refugees.
“Terrorist organizations have already said they’re going to use the refugee program to try to infiltrate the United States and you say you’re less worried about Syrian refugees than other refugees?” Smith asked incredulously.
Richard said the Syrian refugees have been out of Syria for a while and U.S. officials had a record of the time they have spent since they left. She said she was “very worried about terrorists” and that the refugee vetting process is focused on weeding out those threats.
“Don’t you think Syrian refugees might someday become terrorists?” Smith persisted.
“I think the odds of a refugee being a terrorist is very, very small,” Richard said. “But that doesn’t stop us from focusing our program to make sure nobody comes in who might be a terrorist.”
The testy exchange before the House Judiciary Committee came a day after congressional Republicans laid out plans to tighten screening of Syrian refugees after the Paris attacks, setting up a political battle with President Barack Obama.
remember the Boston marathon bomber, they were Chechen Muslim “refugees” as well.
She is correct. People don’t realize that these are refugees who are known to have been in refugee camps for the past two years with thier family. How do we know that? Because the guys in charge of these camps and refugee assistance know who is in their camps. Do we know what these guys were up to in Syria? No. But we do know that these guys lived with thier family for two years in a camp. Wahts the likelihood of an iSIS guy running away to a camp with his family for two years because maybe he will be one of the 10,000 out of 4 million picked to join the USA refugee program? This is completley differet than Europes refugee’s. In Europe they are not coming from refugee camps. Rather in Eurpoe you just cross over to Greece from Syria and bingo you are in Europe. So yes refugees are a great threat to Europe but not the USA.
Lets not forget we were refugees once too. And yes jews were a threat to the USA in 1941. At the time jews were communist spies as in the Ethel Rosenberg case.
Lets stop this silly fear mongoring and think with our brains.
Yep, we had just witnessed that in France
Absolutely correct. Democrats and liberals are a much greater threat!
#2 you are delusional
The refugees that lived in camps for two years that makes them not A threat .terrorist have no problems living the regular family life and at the same timehave a whole different life on the side like 9/11 they went to flight school it wasn’t overnight that they decided to do what they did they have patients as they can wait 2 3 4 years to do with the intent to do my point is just because they were two years in a refugee campand that doesn’t mean squat they have patients and could wait a long time to do what they have to do