Refugees: National leaders wary of Syrian arrivals

Re: “Welcome more Syrians to South Sound,” (TNT editorial, 8/31).

Why not include the following facts in your editorial?

President Obama’s FBI Director James Comey told a House Committee that his agency could not carry out comprehensive background checks on the 10,000 Syrian refugees President Obama wants to allow into the United States.

Homeland Security Director Jeh Johnson said last year: “It is true that we are not going to know a whole lot about the Syrians that come forth in this process… That is definitely a challenge….We know that organizations like ISIL might like to exploit this (Syrian refugee resettlement) program…The good news is that we are better at (vetting) than we were eight years ago. The bad news is that there is no risk-free process.”

Obama’s CIA Director John Brennan says ISIS working to send operatives to the West,

Obama’s Director of National Intelligence James Clapper: “I don’t, obviously, put it past the likes of ISIL to infiltrate operatives among these refugees, so that’s a huge concern of ours.”

This story was originally published September 12, 2016 at 11:48 AM with the headline "Refugees: National leaders wary of Syrian arrivals."