Same Old, Same Old: Refugee Admissions Authorization for FY 2010

President Obama has issued to Congress authorization for admissions through the overseas refugee admission program for fiscal year 2010.  He has authorized admission to the United States, with federal refugee resettlement assistance, 80,000 refugees to be allocated regionally as follows:

Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15,500

East Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,000

Europe and Central Asia . . . . . . . . .2,500

Latin America/Caribbean. . . . . . . . . 5,000

Near East/South Asia. . . . . . . . . . 35,000

Unallocated Reserve . . . . . . . . . . .5,000

The President also provided that, if otherwise qualified, persons from the following countries Cuba, the former Soviet Union, Iraq, and, in exceptional circumstances, persons identified by a United States Embassy in any location.

These numbers and designations are not all that different from those announced by President Bush for
fiscal year 2009.  It is somewhat disppointing that overseas refugee admissions program does not appear to be getting a fresh look by the Obama administration.  Tinkering at the margins is not what the U.S. immigraton and refugee system needs.  Despite the hopes of the Refugee Act of 1980 to remove ideology from refugee admissions decisions, the President’s allocations have reflected ideology, for many years the Cold War and now the “war on terror.”  Note, for example, that Haiti, a long-time place of political violence and desparation, is not one of the countries designated.  

KJ