How Georgia plans to 'confirm' incoming Syrian refugees
Gov. Nathan Deal's executive order instructing state agencies not to cooperate with any federal resettlement efforts of Syrians fleeing their war-torn country included a curious addendum.
He also ordered the Georgia Emergency Management Agency to "confirm" that any refugees already resettled in the state don't pose a security risk.
Since 2011, federal records show Georgia has accepted 66 refugees from Syria, though Deal's administration has pegged the number at 59.
For part of our story Tuesday on the growing momentum in Congress behind the effort to block the refugees, our AJC colleague Shannon McCaffrey asked how a state agency with limited resources could delve into the backgrounds of newcomers from the Middle East.
What she found was an important nuance:
"We're not going to go track these individuals down and have conversations with them," Butterworth said. "We'll be working with federal and local partners to look at the process that got them here."
Butterworth said he would provide a report to Deal after his work was complete.
The Georgia Department of Human Services, meanwhile, sent a memo Wednesday to its staff instructing its staff not to process any applications for benefits to Syrian refugees "until further notice." You can find your copy here.
About the Author
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
