DENVER — Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper insists that the state can welcome Syrian refugees without posing a security threat to residents, but Libby Szabo doesn’t understand how he can be so sure.
“There’s no way of knowing which ones are the terrorists,” said Ms. Szabo, a Jefferson County commissioner and former Republican state legislator. “Instead of making blanket statements, I think he needs to follow up with a plan that ensures the people of Colorado that we will be safe.”
Mr. Hickenlooper was one of a dozen Democratic governors Tuesday meeting with resistance after indicating their states will continue to accept Syrian refugees in spite of public safety concerns stemming from last week’s horrific terrorist attacks on Paris.
Those governors are swimming against the national tide: As of Tuesday, 30 had vowed to resist White House efforts to resettle refugees in their states, including one Democrat, New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, who is challenging Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte in elections next year.
The primary source of contention: The federal refugee screening process, which congressional Republicans and even FBI Director James B. Comey have described as unreliable because it is based largely on information from the failed government of Syria.
Nowhere was the backlash greater than in Virginia, where Republican legislators called for a two-year moratorium on resettlements after Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, indicated that he would not try to stop the federal government from bringing in refugees.
“The current refugee resettlement program used by the United States is not sufficient to filter out the small percent of radicals that will take advantage of the current crisis, and it is with the safety and well-being of all Virginians in mind that we call on the governor to halt the acceptance of Syrian refugees,” said Delegate Manoli Loupassi.
He and three other Republican delegates — Majority Caucus Chairman Tim Hugo, Deputy Majority Leader Todd Gilbert and Greg Habeeb — said they would sponsor legislation in next year’s session to prohibit state agencies from participating in the resettlement process for two years.
Mr. McAuliffe offered assurances that he and his staff “are in constant contact with federal authorities” and that he has asked Brian Moran, state secretary of public safety, “to ensure that every proper precaution is taken to keep Virginians safe.”
Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said Sunday that the refugees would be subject to “robust vetting procedures” involving multiple agencies.
Even so, a poll released Tuesday by the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies found that 56 percent of Virginians oppose the Obama administration’s refugee plan. The survey was taken several days before the Paris attacks.
Connecticut Gov. Dan Malloy, a Democrat, refused to back down from his decision to accept refugees despite a letter from top Republican legislators warning that the move, “while well intentioned, could potentially threaten the security of our residents.”
“Women were kidnapped and sold into slavery and impregnated or otherwise raped. We’re going to deny those folks some protection?” Mr. Malloy told local reporters in a video posted on WFSB-TV.
In Minnesota, House Speaker Kurt Daudt urged Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, to call on President Obama “to halt the acceptance of refugees from Syria into the United States” until the Homeland Security Department finishes a review of the vetting process.
“Minnesotans and many other Americans have rightfully expressed concern about accepting refugees when the screening process may not be comprehensive enough to distinguish between innocent refugees and potential terrorists,” Mr. Daudt said in a Monday letter.
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, another Democrat, said Monday that he would not block the resettlement of refugees, prompting Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder to hit the airwaves Tuesday urging him to reconsider.
“[Mr. Nixon] is pretty much marching in lockstep with the president of the United States, who is singularly out to lunch,” said Mr. Kinder, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination, on FM News Talk 97.1 in St. Louis.
He said Mr. Nixon, who is term-limited, and other Democrats “need to be asked, ‘Do you stand with the president and Gov. Nixon on defaulting to the feds and letting these Syrian refugees in, some small percentage of whom may be very dangerous and the most vicious terrorists, or do you want to protect our people?’”
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said his state “embraces compassion and eschews fear-mongering” as it “welcomes those seeking refuge from persecution,” prompting Port of Seattle Commissioner Bill Bryant to urge the Democrat to reconsider.
Mr. Inslee cited Washington’s effort to resettle Vietnamese in the 1970s, but Mr. Bryant said the situation today is “very different from when our state welcomed Vietnamese refugees.”
“While most Syrian refugees are also just looking for a new start in a free country, we should not let our compassion blind us to legitimate public and personal safety concerns and to those who might take advantage of our generosity and openness,” said Mr. Bryant, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination.
In Colorado, Mr. Hickenlooper promised to work with federal authorities to ensure that the vetting process is “as stringent as possible,” but Senate President Bill Cadman asked him Tuesday to “slow down, think carefully about our security and provide the public with a thorough and detailed explanation of what’s involved in any relocation plan.”
“Providing a secure home to the world’s most vulnerable cannot be assured if that very home is made vulnerable through security risks,” Mr. Cadman said in a statement. “Opening our hearts should not require us to close our eyes to the real dangers that international terrorists pose.”
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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