How Republican Governors Can Get Creative to Interfere With Syrian Refugees

Maybe New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was going for hyperbole when he said that the U.S. should not admit even four-year-old Syrian orphans as refugees. Or maybe not. A four-year-old Syrian refugee is about as vulnerable a person as one can imagine, and the official U.S. policy on refugee resettlement is to give priority to the most vulnerable people in need. It’s not just a pretty slogan on the Statue of Liberty.

But Governor Christie and at least 27 other governors want to shut the door to Syrian refugees. Never mind that governors have no say on accepting refugees. Once the federal government grants someone refugee status—following an exhaustive security vetting process—that person becomes a legal resident of the U.S. No one, not even governors, can discriminate against refugees based on their religion, race, nationality, or ethnicity.