Obama, Wolf Say Syrian Refugees Welcome

President Obama speaks during a press conference in Turkey. (WhiteHouse.gov)

In the wake of deadly terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday, President Obama and Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf said today that the nation — and state — will continue to accept refugees from war-torn Syria.

They promised, however, that the open-door policy would be accompanied with an eye on security.

“Even as we accept more refugees, including Syrians, we do so only after subjecting them to rigorous screening and security checks,” Obama said in a press conference in Turkey. “We also have to remember that many of these refugees are the victims of terrorism themselves, that’s what they’re fleeing. Slamming the doors in their faces would be a betrayal of our values.”

Wolf sounded similar themes in a statement released late this morning and reported by PennLive:

Gov. Tom Wolf wants “Pennsylvania to continue to build on its rich history of accepting immigrants and refugees from around the world but he is also committed to protecting Pennsylvanians and will work with the federal government to ensure it is taking every precaution necessary in screening those families coming into the country,” said his spokesman, Jeffrey Sheridan

Sheridan added: “Pennsylvania will continue working with the federal government to ensure that all individuals have gone through the proper screening process.”

PennLive notes: “In Pennsylvania, many Syrians have settled in the Lehigh Valley, which has a large Arab-American population.”

Officials in Alabama, Arkansas, Michigan, and Texas have said their states will not take such refugees for now.

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