Here’s why Gov. Greg Abbott shouldn’t have said no to refugee resettlement in Texas

Here’s why Gov. Greg Abbott shouldn’t have said no to refugee resettlement in Texas

Here are a few things to know about Gov. Greg Abbott's decision not to participate in the government's refugee resettlement program:

• It has nothing to do with border security. These refugees are here legally, welcomed to the United States after having been investigated thoroughly by this country and by international agencies. Our government recognizes that their lives would be at risk if they were to be returned to their countries of origin. Some are from countries south of our southern border, but most aren't. They're here fleeing religious, ethnic and/ or economic persecution, just like native-born Americans' ancestors.
• They don't strain Texas' resources. To the contrary, Abbott, in effect, turned down federal assistance for these people if they come to our state, which they actually are free to do if they would rather be here, without aid, than in another state participating in the program that is willing to host them. Refugees actually tend to be much greater assets than liabilities to the communities where they settle and rebuild their lives. Studies consistently show they're good for the economy. What they give us is disproportionate to what they take.Abbott's decision runs so contrary to his own religious faith that the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops rebuked him for it. "As Catholics," the bishops said in a letter, "an essential aspect of our faith is to welcome the stranger and care for the alien." They reminded Abbott that Jesus and his parents were refugees.
• The decision contradicts the actual meaning of "Texas." The state's name was derived from the Caddo word for friends.
• Abbott was the first and, as of this writing, only governor to opt out of the program. The reason Abbott had to declare yea or nay whether Texas would participate in refugee resettlement is that President Donald Trump, by executive order, required governors to opt in or out by Jan.21. Thus far, 40 states have opted in, including 18 led by Republican governors.

A federal judge in Maryland decided on Jan. 15 to block the Trump policy temporarily. While we await the outcome of this lawsuit by immigrant advocacy groups, let's just say that there are no good reasons for Abbott to have done what he did. There is only a bad reason, and that's to exploit and vilify refugees as a pander to the worst xenophobic impulses.

In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo explaining his decision, Abbott wrote: "Texas has been left by Congress to deal with disproportionate migration issues resulting from a broken federal immigration system." You could argue that this statement is correct. But to say it in the context of the refugee program suggests that somehow the refugees are to blame and that refusing to participate in the program is a step toward a solution, when in fact neither one is true.

Abbott also noted that Texas took in "roughly 10% of all refugees resettled in the United States" during the past decade. He didn't bother to point out that Texas has more than 9% of the nation's population and that, therefore, Texas' participation is roughly proportionate to its size.

Bottom Line:

Abbott betrayed the spirit of Texas, the United States and his Catholic faith. He compounded those transgressions by making devious statements in his letter to Pompeo, taking the refugee program out of its true context and portraying it, instead, in the false context of this country's immigration policy failures.