Gov. Scott Walker and other Republican leaders signaled Monday that Wisconsin will not be accepting any Syrian refugees following Friday’s terrorist attacks on Paris which left 129 people dead.
Wisconsin joins the growing list of states, including Alabama, Texas and Mississippi, that are refusing refugees due to concern that Islamic extremists could slip through the rigorous vetting process and plot acts of terror on U.S. soil.
“In light of these horrific and tragic attacks, our first priority must be to protect our citizens,” Walker said in a Monday statement. “I have deep concerns about the Obama administration’s plan to accept 10,000 or more Syrian refugees, especially given that one of the Paris attackers was reportedly a Syrian refugee.”
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, echoed the governor in a letter to the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement, cautioning “we cannot take any chances.”
Walker’s decision comes after days of firm rhetoric from other Republicans, including GOP presidential candidates Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz, who suggested safe haven be restricted to Christians.
“We should focus our efforts as it relates to the refugees for the Christians that are being slaughtered,” Bush said on “Meet the Press” Sunday.
“There is no meaningful risk of Christians committing acts of terror,” Cruz told reporters Monday. “They pretend as if there is no religious aspect to this.”
President Barack Obama shot back Monday, saying “that is shameful… we don’t have religious tests for compassion.”
Several Wisconsin lawmakers agree. Prior to the Friday attacks, a bill with bipartisan backing was introduced that would allow the use of federal funds for the resettlement of no less than 937 Syrian refugees.
“Wisconsin can be the start of a new life, free from tyranny and fear, where a small number of Syrian refugees can live freely without dreading the horrific violence of their own government and ISIS,” bill author state Rep. Daniel Riemer, D-Milwaukee, wrote in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Their risky and costly exodus from their homes demonstrates that they choose peace and moderation over violence and extremism.”
Walker said in a statement he will not support the legislation.
