Trump Signs Plan That Puts Lowest Cap on Accepted Refugees Since 1980
The Trump administration has further reduced the number of refugees it will allow in the United States to 18,000 in the coming year.
The administration agreed to allow a maximum of 30,000 refugees into the U.S. during the 2019 federal fiscal year.
The Obama administration had set the limit at 85,000 in former President Barack Obama’s last year in office.
Trump’s new number was the lowest since 1980, according to the New York Post.
In a statement issued Saturday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the Trump administration is doing its share to help refugees in ways other than by letting them resettle into the U.S.
“America’s support for refugees and other displaced people extends well beyond our immigration system,” Pompeo said.
Pompeo said the U.S. prefers to take proactive solutions to address the crises that cause refugee displacement in the first place.
He cited “diplomatic efforts around the world to find solutions to crises, like our support for the legitimate government in Venezuela against Maduro’s tyranny. Addressing the core problems that drive refugees away from their homes helps more people more rapidly than resettling them in the United States.”
The United States pumps billions into programs designed to help individuals displaced by wars, Pompeo said.
“[I]n Fiscal Year 2019 the United States contributed nearly $9.3 billion to supporting crisis response globally, the largest contribution of any country in the world,” he said.
“Helping displaced people as close to their homes as possible better facilitates their eventual safe and voluntary return. Their efforts to rebuild their communities help restore affected areas to stability, which is always in America’s interest.”
Pompeo said the refugee program is not the only way newcomers enter the U.S.
“Since 1980, America has welcomed almost 3.8 million refugees and asylees, and our country hosts hundreds of thousands of people under other humanitarian immigration categories,” he said.
Above all, Pompeo noted, the U.S. is already facing an immigration crisis due to the rise in illegal immigration at the southern border.
“[T]he security and humanitarian crisis along our southern border has contributed to a burden on our immigration system that must be alleviated before we can again resettle large numbers of refugees. Therefore, prioritizing the cases of those already in our country is simply a matter of common sense,” Pompeo said, adding that the U.S. currently has more than a million pending cases in which individuals have claimed asylum.
When the Trump administration first announced in September that it would be lowering the number of refugees it would admit, it was harshly criticized.
Pompeo pushed back against critics in his statement.
“At the core of the Trump Administration’s foreign policy is a commitment to make decisions based on reality, not wishes, and to drive optimal outcomes based on concrete facts,” he said.
“This year’s determination on refugee admissions does just that, even as we sustain our longstanding commitment to help vulnerable populations and our leadership as the world’s most generous nation.”
The document setting the ceiling carves up the overall total by various types of refugees.
The total allows for 5,000 refugees who “have been persecuted or have a well-founded fear of persecution on account of religion” or are covered by other specific sections of the law.
Another 4,000 refugees will be allowed in from Iraq.
The presidential order would let in 1,500 refugees from El Salvador, Guatemala or Honduras.
The other 7,500 refugees would come through a variety of processes, including referrals from U.S. embassies and family reunification cases.
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