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TN House Committee Advances ‘Hateful Anti-Refugee’ Resolution

CREDIT: World Relief

World Relief

Refugee family reunites at airport

A Tennessee House committee advanced what some are calling a “hateful anti-refugee” resolution Tuesday.

The resolution, HJR 0741, sponsored by Rep. Terri Weaver (R-Lancaster), seeks to advance Tennessee’s lawsuit against the federal government over refugee resettlement here.

The lawsuit was filed in March 2017 against the United States Department of State on the grounds that refugee settlement in Tennessee violates the U.S. Constitution by requiring the state to pay for a program it did not consent to.

The lawsuit was dismissed in March 2018 by a federal judge who ruled there was a lack of standing by the legislature to sue on its own behalf and that the state failed to show that refugee resettlement in Tennessee violates the Constitution.

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision in August, also stating that the General Assembly had not established its standing.


In September, attorneys with the Thomas Moore Law Center (TMLC), who are representing the state in the suit, filed a petition asking the appellate court to rehear the case, on the grounds that the court’s decision was “painfully at odds” with Supreme Court precedent. The court denied that request.


Now, attorneys with the TMLC are petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.

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Weaver, who was the House sponsor of the 2016 resolution that initiated the litigation, said the purpose of the resolution is to help the lawsuit move to the Supreme Court.

“The problem that is being addressed is that the federal government cannot coerce the states to pay for a federal program because that sets a very dangerous precedent for us as a state using the state budget as a solution to federal funding deficit.”

Weaver

Weaver said President Donald Trump’s executive order in September, which gave states the choice to opt in or out of continuing refugee resettlement and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s consent to the program “has made it a muddy mess.”

“We object to Governor Bill Lee’s action, the effect of which nullifies and violates the constitutional duty and exclusive institutional authority and power of the General Assembly to expend public money pursuant to appropriations made by law,” the resolution reads in part.

Weaver said she doesn’t like to see “where the separation of powers are muddied. We need to stay in our own sandbox.”

Rep. Bill Beck (D-Nashville) opposed the resolution Tuesday.

“To me it just seems that the love, accepting, warm, hospitality that we as Tennesseans serve is not reflected in this resolution,” Beck said. “We need to put ourselves in the shoes of those fleeing persecution and the challenges they have and know the empathy we need to have for them and to know what they’re going through and to welcome them and love them and lift them up. That’s my position.”

To that Weaver responded: “This is not that. This is all about a federal program. We can’t stop refugees from coming here because it’s a federal program. So what we’re asking is the federal government to pay for it.”

Weaver added that “the spirit of this is not mean. The spirit of this is to separate separations of powers, which we gave our oath to protect.

We’re appropriating funds for something we do not have authority over and that is a slippery slope for other programs down the road.”

Weaver said she is unclear about exactly how much the state is appropriating to the program, but that the state has been responsible for costs related to housing, English Language Acquisition (ELA), and health-care needs of refugees.

“We have our homeless, our veterans, our seniors,” Weaver said. “We have people in this state that are citizens currently that have needs we need to address as well.”

The resolution advanced Tuesday with a voice vote.

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Judith Clerjeune, policy and legislative affairs manager for the Tennessee Immigration and Refugee Rights Coalition Votes condemned the resolution, calling it a “hateful tactic.”

“Just in time for another election, a handful of legislators are returning to their classic hateful playful — scapegoating refugees,” Clerjeune said. “Facing a primary challenge, Rep. Weaver is trying to appeal to those most hateful voters in her district, hoping she can win her re-election bid by targeting some of the world’s most vulnerable people. But, her constituents deserve a representative who will work to meaningfully improve their lives, not just recycle a failed resolution from five years ago.”

Clerjeune also questions the intent of the resolution.

“Despite legislators’ attempts to cast these bills and resolutions as simply a matter of clarifying constitutional responsibilities, the real intent and impact of these efforts are a crystal clear: keeping refugees from finding safety and opportunity in Tennessee.”

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Tennessee Legislature’s Anti-Refugee Lawsuit Defeated (Again)

CREDIT: Courtesty of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Courtesty of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Children line up inside a U.S. immigration detention center.


A Tennessee appeals court upheld a lower court’s decision Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit by state lawmakers aimed at blocking refugee resettlement in Tennessee.

The Tennessee General Assembly sued the United States Department of State on the grounds that refugee settlement in Tennessee violates the U.S. Constitution.

The lawsuit alleged that though Tennessee had withdrawn from the federal Refugee Resettlement Program, the federal government forced Tennessee to continue funding the program by “threatening the state with the loss of federal Medicaid funding.” The state said it had to “expend a substantial amount of state taxpayer money” to fund the program.

The lawsuit was dismissed in March 2018 by a federal judge who ruled there was a lack of standing by the legislature to sue on its own behalf and that the state failed to show that refugee resettlement in Tennessee violates the Constitution.

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision Wednesday, also stating that the General Assembly had not established its standing

“Accordingly, we do not reach the questions of ripeness, statutory preclusion, or whether the General Assembly stated a claim upon which relief could be granted,” the court’s opinion reads.

[pullquote-1] Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, said she “applauds the Sixth Circuit’s decision, which reinforces that this lawsuit should have never been brought in the first place.”


“What’s more, as a state and as a nation, we value fair treatment of refugees and compassion toward those in need,” Weinberg said in a statement. “Our country has a long tradition of honoring these values through our asylum system. There is nothing more American than allowing people the opportunity to seek safety and to work and care for their families.

“Today’s decision ensures that Tennessee will continue to uphold these important values. We will continue to remain vigilant and ready to act against politicians’ attempts to undermine refugee resettlement in our country.”

Lisa Sherman Nikolaus, policy director for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, said the legislature used this lawsuit to “stoke fear and division.”

“After two embarrassing defeats in the courts, the legislation must finally put this hateful lawsuit to rest and put our taxpayer resources to better use, such as funding public schools and increasing access to healthcare,” Sherman Nikolaus said. “Throughout the debate around the lawsuit, Tennesseans have shown up to defend the life-saving work of refugee resettlement.

“It is clear that our communities are ready and willing to welcome those seeking safety and protection in our country and will reject efforts by lawmakers to divide us.”

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Faith Leaders Urge Governor Lee to Welcome Immigrants, Refugees

CREDIT: Courtesty of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Courtesty of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

immigration detention center.


Eight faith leaders from the Memphis area joined about 70 others from around the state Tuesday afternoon in delivering a letter to Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, urging him to affirm the value of welcoming immigrants and refugees.

In the letter, the signatories identify themselves as faith leaders, “representing many traditions and denominations across Tennessee, concerned about the future of our state.”

Leaders from the Memphis area include:


• Peter Gathje of the Memphis Theological Seminary
•

Joan Laney and Morgan Stafford, as well as

Revs. Larry Chitwood,

Bernardo Zapata, 

Fred Morton, and Tondala Hayward of the United Methodist Church.

• Rev. Luvy Waechter Webb of Evergreen Presbyterian Church

The letter says that “no Tennesseans should be made to feel unwelcome,” and that refugees and immigrants “make our communities stronger.”

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“We are, therefore, deeply saddened by much of the recent rhetoric and legislative actions that run counter to these deeply held beliefs,” the letter reads. “In this legislative session alone we have seen bills aimed at denying birth certificates and housing to immigrants, as well as an extreme resolution in support of ending birthright citizenship. These actions display our state, and our state’s government, as unwelcoming and cruel.”

Though most of the legislation that the letter refers to has failed in the Tennessee General Assembly this year, the letter says the discourse surrounding the bills, “whether they pass or not, is harmful.”

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The legislation of concern is largely sponsored by Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris), who has said he wants to make Tennessee the “last place” an undocumented immigrant would want to live.

Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris)

The first piece of legislation, HJ R47, is a resolution that would have affirmed President Donald Trump’s efforts to end birthright citizenship. The resolution failed last week in a House subcommittee.

Griffey is also responsible for HB 0562, a bill that would have imposed taxes on money transfers in order to raise funds for the construction of a wall at the country’s southern border. That measure also failed earlier this month in a House subcommittee.

Another bill introduced by Griffey, HB 0614, would have made it a crime for landlords to lease to undocumented immigrants. It was sent to a summer study Tuesday afternoon in the House Commerce Committee.

One of the few remaining immigration-related bills sponsored by Griffey is HB 0662. It would prevent the state from registering birth certificates to a child born to “a mother who is not lawfully present in the United States unless the father is a U.S. citizen” and can provide documentation to prove it.

It is not clear when that legislation will be heard in a House committee again. 

“Hateful rhetoric and the threat of extreme legislation creates fear within our communities, families, and congregations,” the letter continues. “We ask that you put yourself in the place of a refugee family or the Tennessee-born child of immigrants. Would you feel welcomed, loved, and accepted in this state amongst this current dialogue?”

Pleading to Lee’s faith, the letter asks the governor to “live up to that call by affirming the value of immigrants and refugees from out state.”

“We know that you are a person of faith, and we know that faith leads you to value and respect the worth and dignity of all people, no matter their documentation status or country of origin,” the letter reads. “May you remember that they too are Tennesseans, and they too are children of God.

“We are praying that you set an example for this legislature and all Tennesseans by showing what it means to lead with compassion and moral conviction.”

The faith leaders’ Tuesday actions were co-organized by the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, the Tennessee Justice Center, and Open Table Nashville.