Governor Bentley Addresses Suing Feds Over Refugees
Governor Robert Bentley announced Thursday he has filed a lawsuit against the federal government alleging authorities violated the Refugee Act of 1980. WBHM’s Esther Ciammachilli attended a press conference where Bentley talked about the suit.
Why is Governor Bentley Suing The Federal Government?
“Governor Bentley says he’s concerned about the existence of Syrian refugees in Alabama,” said Ciammachilli. Following Bentley’s executive order in November that forbids state agencies from accepting Syrian refugees, he wrote three letters to the White House demanding to know if the federal government had relocated any Syrian refugees to Alabama. If they have, Bentley says he wants information on these refugees.
According to the Refugee Act of 1980, the federal government is required to provide information to any states that will be accepting refugees.
“Since Bentley’s letters went unanswered, he says there’s no way of knowing if there are in fact any Syrian refugees in Alabama,” Ciammachilli said. “He feels the federal government, specifically the Obama Administration, the State Department and the Department of Health and Human Services, have violated the Refugee Act.”
Not The First Governor to Sue Over Refugees
Bentley’s actions aren’t unprecedented. Last month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott filed a similar lawsuit claiming he wasn’t adequately consulted on the relocation of six Syrian refugees in his state. The federal government said they did communicate. Following that response, Texas withdrew its request that temporarily barred refugee relocation.
Ciammachilli says these lawsuits have some similarities.
“Both governors feel they did not receive adequate communication, or any communication in Bentley’s case, regarding the relocation of these refugees,” said Ciammachilli. “However, they’re different because the federal government said they did contact Texas, whereas Alabama allegedly received no such correspondence.”
What’s Next?
Ciammachilli says the U.S. State Department has the last word when it comes to the relocation of any refugees, including those from Syria. “However they are required to communicate with state governments about this process as per the Refugee Act of 1980,” said Ciammachilli.
White House calls for a ‘comprehensive review’ of eight Smithsonian museums
The effort is focused on bringing the organization in line with President Trump's cultural directives ahead of the country's 250th anniversary celebrations.
Trump official tells census workers Congress has final say over the count, not Trump
Days after the president's call for a "new" census, the top official overseeing the Census Bureau told employees that Congress, not Trump, has final say over the tally, NPR has exclusively learned.
‘Alien: Earth’ is one of the best shows so far this year
The TV prequel to the Alien movies calls back to the best elements of those original films — including questions about corporate exploitation and technological advancements.
State Department slashes its annual reports on human rights
Required by Congress, the reports no longer single out things like rigged elections or sexual violence against children as human rights violations.
Tropical Storm Erin could become the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2025 season
The National Hurricane Center expects the storm to strengthen over the next several days and says it could become a hurricane by late Thursday.
D.C. has been under tighter federal control before. Here’s what it looked like
Trump's expansion of federal authority over Washington, D.C., is in many ways unprecedented, but calls to mind other times the city has been under tighter federal control.
