Alejandro Mayorkas fought for refugees and Dreamers. Can he undo 4 years of Trump policies?
After a series of coordinated terrorist attacks in crowded Paris cafes and restaurants in November 2015 left 130 people dead, some members of Congress threatened to shut down the U.S. refugee program.
Alejandro "Ali" Mayorkas, then deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, sprang into action. He and other staffers called individual members of Congress, pointing out the program's value and security features, explaining that most of the Paris attackers were not refugees. It was a Herculean, round-the-clock effort, for three days straight.
It worked. The push to remove the program fizzled.
“There are refugees who live in the United States right now because Ali Mayorkas helped save the program,” said Alexandra Veitch, who worked at the White House's Office of Legislative Affairs and collaborated with Mayorkas.
The effort illustrates the many traits former colleagues and staffers say Mayorkas possesses: tough, hardworking, persuasive, personally invested in issues and owning an inherent empathy for the plight of refugees.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/alejandro-mayorkas-fought-for-refugees-and-dreamers-can-he-undo-four-years-of-trump-immigration-policies/ar-BB1dq8zU?li=BBnbklE&ocid=DELLDHP
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