Democrats Beg Joe Biden: Open U.S. Borders to Flood of Afghan Refugees
Democrats Beg Joe Biden: Open U.S. Borders to Flood of Afghan Refugees
by JOHN BINDER 16 Aug 2021
Democrats and mass migration activists are pleading with President Joe Biden to open the United States’ borders to a flood of Afghans.
As Afghanistan’s capital city of Kabul falls under Taliban control, House Democrats are urging Biden to admit as many Afghans to the U.S. as possible through the Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) program and the refugee resettlement program.
“We have a moral obligation to the Afghan people … we must immediately welcome them to the U.S. [and] provide real support as they rebuild their lives,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) wrote in a statement:
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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
@AOC
For all those who lost, sacrificed, suffered, and served in the last 20 years of war and occupation, the United States has a singular responsibility in extending safe refuge to the Afghan people.That is the absolute floor.
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
@RepAOC
We have a moral obligation to the Afghan people. The U.S. role in this crisis is indisputable. We must waste no time or expense in helping refugees safely & swiftly leave Afghanistan. We must immediately welcome them to the U.S. & provide real support as they rebuild their lives.
1:48 PM · Aug 16, 2021
Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) said the U.S. has “a duty to save lives” and therefore must begin immediately admitting as many Afghans into the U.S. as possible. Likewise, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) said the U.S. must “quickly” evacuate Afghans and bring them to the U.S.
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Congresswoman Cori Bush
@RepCori
Following the Vietnam War, our country welcomed 120,000 refugees in a single year.
Yet the United States has only taken in ~2,000 Afghan refugees thus far.
We have a duty to save lives — and to do so, we must welcome many, many more refugees as quickly as possible.
1:41 PM · Aug 16, 2021
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Rep. Pramila Jayapal
@RepJayapal
We must do all we can to quickly and safely evacuate our allies, partners, and refugees from Afghanistan.
My office is at the ready to continue helping constituents who need assistance with evacuation. Please reach us at 206-674-0040 or at this link: https://jayapal.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Privacy-Release-Form-Immigration.pdf…
3:07 PM · Aug 16, 2021
Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) wrote in a statement that the U.S. ought to “expand asylum” to invite more Afghans to the U.S.
“As a son of refugees, these images from Afghanistan are heartbreaking,” Neguse wrote. “Now is the moment to expand asylum for those who need it most. The U.S. government must honor its word and ensure our Afghan partners are evacuated.”
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Rep. Joe Neguse
@RepJoeNeguse
As a son of refugees, these images from Afghanistan are heartbreaking. Now is the moment to expand asylum for those who need it most. The U.S. government must honor it’s word and ensure our Afghan partners are evacuated. #Afghanistan
12:07 PM · Aug 16, 2021
In addition to pleas from elected Democrats, mass migration activists and refugee contractors are urging Biden to open U.S. borders to Afghans.
An official with the left-wing Progressive Policy Institute suggested that Biden resettle all Afghans in Utah to help turn the state blue. Meanwhile, the Cato Institute’s Alex Nowrasteh said “there is no good [national security] reason to block Afghan refugees.”
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Ben "Tax Inheritances" Ritz
@BudgetBen
·
Aug 16, 2021
A modest proposal: Utah is a red state with plenty of open federal land, unique sympathies towards refugees, and a compassionate/pragmatic governor.
Let's just build a new city there and populate it with 100,000 Afghan refugees who supported our military over the past 20 years.
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Ben "Tax Inheritances" Ritz
@BudgetBen
Best-case scenario: we 1) save our allies, 2) build a YIMBY oasis out west, and 3) turn Utah purple/blue with immigrants who love Joe Biden.
Worst-case scenario: 1+2, except the Afghan refugees are still pretty religious and Utah continues to be a quirky compassionate red state.
2:05 PM · Aug 16, 2021
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The Alex Nowrasteh
@AlexNowrasteh
There is no good natsec reason to block Afghan refugees. The risk of terrorism from Afghans has been low. From 1975-2017, zero people were murdered by Afghans in terror attacks on US soil. https://cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/terrorists-immigration-status-nationality-risk-analysis-1975-2017#countries-of-origin-for-foreign-born-terrorists…
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9:25 AM · Aug 16, 2021
Neoconservative pundit Bill Kristol, a member of the failed “Never Trump” movement, said “it would be great” if the U.S. resettled hundreds of thousands of Afghans.
Similarly, a Washington Post opinion journalist wrote that he “sure hope[s]” the Biden administration mimics German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s policies that have brought millions of refugees to Germany.
Jesuit Catholic priest Fr. James Martin, an editor at America Magazine, said he prays Biden admits “as many Afghan refugees as possible” to the U.S.
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Bill Kristol
@BillKristol
Every Afghan refugee coming to America--and it would be great if we could help as many as "a couple hundred thousand" to escape--will have done more to help American troops, and American civilians serving our country, than Charlie Kirk every has.
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Jason Campbell
@JasonSCampbell
Charlie Kirk says Biden intentionally let Afghanistan fall because he "wants a couple hundred thousand more Ilhan Omars to come into America to change the body politic permanently"
https://twitter.com/JasonSCampbell/s...an-refugees%2F
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2:59 PM · Aug 16, 2021
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Radley Balko
@radleybalko
I sure hope so. Mantu trucks on every corner.
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8:14 AM · Aug 16, 2021
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James Martin, SJ
@JamesMartinSJ
I pray that @JoeBiden, in light of the catastrophic failures of multiple administrations in Afghanistan, does the moral thing and accepts as many Afghan refugees as possible. Look to Canada, and many European countries, who accept proportionately far more refugees than we do.
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2:26 PM · Aug 16, 2021
As Breitbart News reported, Biden has no plans to prioritize the evacuation of American citizens out of Afghanistan — which has been compared to the Fall of Saigon in 1975 — over Afghans applying for SIVs and P-2 visas. Defense Department officials have said thousands of Americans are stranded in Afghanistan.
On Monday, Defense Department spokesman John Kirby confirmed that the administration is planning to bring up to 22,000 Afghans to the U.S. for resettlement across the nation. First, they will be sent to three military bases.
Last month, Biden began resettling hundreds of Afghans and their family members at Fort Lee in Prince George County, Virginia. The State Department expanded who could be resettled in the U.S. from Afghanistan by waiving prior requirements and fast-tracking their resettlement, with the help of Republican and Democrat lawmakers.
From January to March, the Biden administration issued more than 2,000 SIVs to Afghans for permanent resettlement in the U.S. From October 2020 to July 31, 4,130 Afghans have been resettled on SIVs, alone, while another nearly 500 Afghans have been resettled in the U.S. through the refugee resettlement program.
Refugee resettlement costs American taxpayers nearly $9 billion every five years, according to research, and each refugee costs taxpayers about $133,000 over the course of their lifetime. Within five years, an estimated 16 percent of all refugees admitted will need housing assistance paid for by taxpayers.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2...ghan-refugees/
