Another 50 of Australia’s
rejected asylum seekers are on the way to Any Town, USA, by
Ann Corcoran 4/19/18
The newest batch of 50 will join the 233
already here. An Australian official who was originally involved with
making the “dumb” deal with Barack Obama predicts the US will take all
1,250 and maybe
more!
For new readers who have never heard of
this incredibly stupid arrangement, see my entire archive of previous posts
by clicking here.
From The Australian: Former Australian Border Force
commissioner Roman Quaedvlieg says he is confident the Trump administration
will accept its upper limit of 1250 refugees under a deal with the federal
government, and said the US might take even more people.
The government yesterday seized on reports a
further 50 refugees in Manus Island and Nauru had been cleared for resettlement
in the US to argue the government’s border protection policies were working.
Mr Quaedvlieg was removed from his job
in March after an official investigation but previously worked on the deal originally sealed with the Obama administration.
It was the subject of a tense phone call
between Malcolm Turnbull and US President Donald Trump.
“The US deal to settle refugees from
Manus and Nauru was struck throughout the course of 2016 and was achieved
through both formal and informal diplomatic channels,” Mr Quaedvlieg told The
Australian.
“Many of us called in friendships and favours
in relationships that we cultivated through the Five Eyes alliance. (Click here to learn about Five Eyes which I
had never heard of!)
“We were fortunate that President Trump
honoured the deal that was struck with the Obama administration.”
Under the deal, the US agreed to accept
as many as 1250 people as long as they passed “extreme vetting” procedures.
Mr Quaedvlieg, a former senior police
officer, said he would not rule out the US accepting more than 1250 refugees.
Sky News reported 50 refugees had been cleared
for resettlement in the US and would move to their new home within a fortnight.
This would be in addition to the 233 people who had already moved to the US
under the deal.
How ironic is this! The new New Zealand Prime Minister made a
big show a few months back of offering to take some of the mostly Muslim men
that Australia won’t take to its mainland, but not so fast!
Government papers obtained by the news
outlet this month show Australia asked the New Zealand government to keep its
offer on the table as a contingency plan in case the US deal fell through.
Interestingly, the government documents
suggested there were concerns about detainees passing New Zealand’s own strict
screening and security laws.
There is no sense directing you to the
whole article (it is behind a pay wall), but take my word for it.
Donald Trump should have stuck with his
original instincts and nixed the dumb deal in the first months of his
presidency. It is not only dumb, but could set a dangerous
precedent. This process is way outside of the norm for international
refugee movement.
And, if just one of these men (who have been
incarcerated for at least 4 years) goes wrong, commits violence of some sort,
it will be on the President!
Contact the White House! and tell the
President what you think about this “dumb” deal!
Norb
Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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