Georgia to feds: Send fewer foreign refugees here

[pampango]

1. And the republican base is heard from again. Too many 'them' coming to our republican state.

They have come from Myanmar, Bhutan, Iraq, Somalia and many other countries.

Critics counter that Georgia has it backwards. They say the private agencies that help resettle refugees attract millions of dollars in federal funding and private contributions, creating a net gain for Georgia. They add that refugees – who are given legal status when they come to the U.S. — quickly become self-sufficient, pay taxes and start businesses here.

Georgia started asking for fewer refugees a year after Deal signed into law legislation aimed at driving illegal immigrants out of the state. Critics said they see an ideological pattern of hostility to immigrants. State officials denied a connection, saying they want to be more involved in deciding where the refugees are resettled.

The federal government provides refugees with funding that partially covers the cost of rent, furniture, food and clothing. Private contributions supplement that funding. Refugees may work in the U.S. They are required to apply for permanent residency after a year and are eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship after five years.

Georgia was one of the republican states that passed their own immigration laws patterned after that in Arizona.

Now that the 'illegal immigrant' boogeyman has less power to fire up the republican base, it is time to move on to refugees. They are totally legal, of course, but still very much a 'them' that can fire up the base. If I were a legal, non-refugee immigrant in Georgia I think I could read the handwriting on the wall and know who is the next 'them' target after illegal immigrants and refugees.