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Democratic governor demands halt to refugee settlement in US
Hot Air.com ^ | November 16, 2015 | ED MORRISEY

Posted on 11/16/2015 4:47:18 PM PST by Kaslin

As the Daily Beast says, it’s not just Republicans. After more than a dozen GOP governors announced plans to block the relocation of Syrian refugees to their states, New Hampshire’s Democratic governor joined the group. Maggie Hassan’s spokesman told the New Hampshire Union-Leader that safety and security for Americans has to come first:

"Protecting the safety and security of our people is the first responsibility of government," spokesman William Hinkle said. "And the Governor has always made clear that we must ensure robust refugee screening to protect American citizens, and believes that we must know more of the facts about those who carried out the Paris terrorist attacks and have strong assurances of safety from our intelligence officials before we admit refugees from Syria into the United States."

Hinkle told The Daily Beast over email that Hassan believes the refugee settlement program should stop immediately.

"The Governor has always made clear that we must ensure robust refugee screening to protect American citizens," he emailed, "and the Governor believes that the federal government should halt acceptance of refugees from Syria until intelligence and defense officials can assure that the process for vetting all refugees, including those from Syria, is as strong as possible to ensure the safety of the American people."

That puts a little dent in Barack Obama’s accusations against critics of his refugee policy, does it not? Hassan is not just a Democratic governor, she’s the chief executive in a very important state in the 2016 elections. Tossing around charges of being un-American for opposing a rapid influx of tens of thousands of refugees, especially when that policy allowed at least one of the Paris perpetrators to get into Europe, might be a wee bit impolitic. At the very least, it will force Obama to de-escalate his rhetoric about Republicans and start escalating his fortitude when dealing with ISIS.

Speaking of which, six in ten Americans disagree with Barack Obama that the current strategy used to fight ISIS is successful and want more robust action against the terrorist quasi-state, according to a new Reuters poll. Sixty-three percent now worry that a Paris-style attack will soon play out near them, which makes Obama’s stay-the-course lecturing today more than a little discordant. However, the majority of Americans agree with Obama on one point — no ground troops into Syria:

A majority of Americans want the United States to intensify its assault on the Islamic State following the Paris attacks, but most remain opposed to sending troops to Iraq or Syria, where the militant group is based, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. …

The poll found that 60 percent of Americans think the United States should be doing more to attack Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. A small majority said they support using airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, but about 65 percent oppose sending special forces to the region, a move that has already been taken by Obama.

When asked about regular ground troops, the opposition grew stronger with 76 percent opposing deploying troops.

Support for deploying ground troops has vacillated over the last fifteen months. Polling in the immediate aftermath of the butchering of American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff showed majority support for boots on the ground, at least in some polls, but the lack of targeted attacks on Americans seems to have shifted that figure significantly in the opposite direction. As late as March of this year, a Quinnipiac poll showed 62/30 support for deploying troops to fight ISIS after the death of Kayla Mueller, but eight months later, public opinion has shifted back — at least if this Reuters poll is accurate.

There is also some cognitive dissonance on refugees, too. A majority of 52% believe taking in refugees from Syria makes nations less safe, and the Paris attacks make that pretty clear. On the other hand, the respondents are split 41/40 on the question of whether we should admit refugees anyway. That speaks to a certain segment of the populace willing to take some risks in order to help out people genuinely in distress, but it also may be one of the reasons that almost two-thirds of the respondents think they’ll have to deal with a Paris or Mumbai in their own back yard.

For the moment, the poll is a mixed bag for Obama, but mostly bad news. While he can take some comfort in opposition to US ground troops being deployed for combat in Syria, that fluctuates often enough that it won’t outlast the next attack. Otherwise, people are not buying Obama’s claims to have “contained” ISIS through his leadership, and they’re more concerned about terrorism than they have been in a while. They largely don’t agree that refusing to allow a massive influx of refugees from a terrorism-afflicted region into the country is somehow un-American, and aren’t exactly clamoring for that to happen.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; US: New Hampshire
KEYWORDS: barackobama; isis; maggiehassan; polls; refugees; reuters
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1 posted on 11/16/2015 4:47:18 PM PST by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

2 posted on 11/16/2015 4:50:48 PM PST by Travis McGee (www.EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: Kaslin

Where is this in the CONSTITUTION?
take it to the top court .... if necessary

WHERE ARE THE REPUBS.......A G A I N..... useless titsonabull..... noballsatall...


3 posted on 11/16/2015 4:51:51 PM PST by zzwhale
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To: Kaslin

In the likely event there’s a terrorist attack in the next six months or so, the rats are starting to understand that their re-election chances will disappear if they don’t get in front of the “refugee” issue. Flop sweat!


4 posted on 11/16/2015 4:52:51 PM PST by Menehune56 ("Let them hate so long as they fear" (Oderint Dum Metuant), Lucius Accius (170 BC - 86 BC))
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To: Kaslin

Feinstein disagrees too. Finally a bipartisan response to Obama’s insanity.


5 posted on 11/16/2015 4:53:55 PM PST by Sasparilla
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To: Kaslin

> New Hampshire’s Democratic governor

The party name is the Democrat Party, not the Democratic Party. The sentence should refer to New Hampshire’s Democrat governor.


6 posted on 11/16/2015 4:54:02 PM PST by Ray76
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To: Menehune56

Horrible way to win the next election but I believe you’re right.


7 posted on 11/16/2015 4:55:42 PM PST by JimSEA
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To: Travis McGee

FUBR !


8 posted on 11/16/2015 4:56:01 PM PST by American Constitutionalist
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To: Kaslin
"Protecting the safety and security of our people is the first responsibility of government,"

This from a Democrat?

9 posted on 11/16/2015 4:56:38 PM PST by grobdriver (Where is Wilson Blair when you need him?)
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To: Sasparilla

Obama’s legacy..


10 posted on 11/16/2015 4:57:04 PM PST by American Constitutionalist
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To: grobdriver

Protecting the safety and security of the lives of the American people is the government’s job according to the Constitution as far as a strong military goes.

Actually some Democrats do “ get it, but for some their ideology gets in the way to farther their agendas.


11 posted on 11/16/2015 5:01:14 PM PST by American Constitutionalist
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To: Kaslin

Governor Bentley/Alabama is a Dem and he said no pretty early on.


12 posted on 11/16/2015 5:11:50 PM PST by Kenny (RED)
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To: Kaslin

Hassan is, itself, a Middle Eastern name.


13 posted on 11/16/2015 5:13:16 PM PST by Does so (Dem's Plan�> Biden, 1 term, VP Michelle Obama for the 2nd...==8-O)
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To: Kenny

Here in Washington state of course our libtard governor says we will continue to take Syrian Muslims.


14 posted on 11/16/2015 5:15:29 PM PST by angry elephant (Endangered species in Seattle)
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To: Kaslin

This Dem gov. is wiser about terrorism than so-called Republican Marco Rubio, who even voted against screening immigrants in 2013.


15 posted on 11/16/2015 5:17:53 PM PST by Sun (Pray that God sends us good leaders. Please say a prayer now.)
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To: Kenny

It’s in the title, and I can read


16 posted on 11/16/2015 5:19:31 PM PST by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: Kaslin

How long until he gets audited/punished/etc. for refusing to accept?


17 posted on 11/16/2015 5:19:57 PM PST by setha (It is past time for the United States to take back what the world took away.)
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To: Does so

I think her husband is a bit of a Muslim activist.


18 posted on 11/16/2015 5:22:15 PM PST by NewHampshireDuo
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To: Does so

Maybe as a first name,


19 posted on 11/16/2015 5:23:23 PM PST by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: Kaslin

This is a bullcrap stance. She’s running for the Senate against the incumbent Republican. If Hassan didn’t take this posture, she’d be trailing by 25%.


20 posted on 11/16/2015 5:27:26 PM PST by fieldmarshaldj (Resist We Much)
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