Texas will not accept any Syrian refugees fleeing their civil war-torn country, Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday, specifically citing the deadly terrorist attacks on Paris last week and a separate Texas shooting earlier this year.
BREAKING: Texas will not accept any Syrian refugees & I demand the U.S. act similarly. Security comes first.
https://t.co/uE34eluXYd
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) November 16, 2015
He has ordered the state’s Health and Human Services Commission’s Refugee Resettlement Program not to participate in any resettlement program for Syrian refugees, and pressed President Barack Obama to stop his plan to take in 10,000 refugees over the next year.
“Neither you nor any federal official can guarantee that Syrian refugees will not be part of any terroristic activity,” Abbott wrote in a letter to President Obama. “As such, opening our door to them irresponsibly exposes our fellow Americans to unacceptable peril.”
Abbott said the federal government does not have adequate background information that is necessary to effectively conduct proper security checks on Syrian nationals. He cited May’s terrorist attack on a Garland event that hosted an art contest to draw the Prophet Mohammad, which ISIS took credit for.
Texas Governor Abbott Letter to Obama Refusing Syrian Refugees
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