Democrats in US Congress Call for Lifting Suspension on Refugee Program
A group of Democrats in the US Congress have written a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging Washington to lift the four-month suspension of the US refugee program.
The letter states that the arrival of refugees in the US has strengthened the country, as refugees have contributed over $123 billion to the US economy over the past 15 years.
A section of the letter reads: “More than 32,000 refugees have arrived through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) to the United States since the start of FY 2025, thousands of whom remain eligible for R&P services. This is on top of the approximately 10,000 Afghan nationals who are in the US on Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs), which they received after risking their lives to assist US troops and US government efforts in Afghanistan; these SIVs also remain eligible for such benefits.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the suspension order simplifies the process for reviewing visa applicants and undocumented migrants in the US. She explained that the Secretary of State has been instructed to assess the process and ensure that countries sending migrants do so transparently.
Karoline Leavitt said: “The president signed an executive order to streamline the vetting for visa applicants and for illegal immigrants in this country who are coming of course from other nations. It also directed the Secretary of State to review the process and make sure that other countries around the world are being completely transparent with our nation in the individuals that they are sending here. So the Secretary of State has been directed to report back to the president. I haven’t seen that report yet, we’ve only been here for a few days.”
Meanwhile, US visa applicants residing in third countries have called on Washington to facilitate their transfer to the United States.
“Our request is that President Trump reconsider the issue of Afghan refugees and make an exception for them so they can resume the processing of their cases,” said an Afghan immigration case holder.
“The immigration laws and cases that have been halted for several months have negatively impacted Afghans in Islamabad,” said Ehsanullah Ahmadzai, a migrant rights activist.
This comes as Donald Trump, after assuming office, signed several executive orders, including a four-month suspension of the US refugee program.
