WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on the various statements from primarily Republican governors attempting to stop Syrian refugees from entering their states. A video of his remakrs can be viewed here.

“As elected officials, the safety of all Americans is our highest priority. The United States should be doing everything in our power to know who we allow into this country – refugees, business people or tourists. I wish that prior to making public statements that run contrary to federal and state authority, governors who are trying to shut the doors to their states from refugees including Maryland’s governor, would have reached out to federal officials for details on the stringent security screenings required for refugee resettlement anywhere in the United States. I take very strongly the responsibility to make sure these security screenings prevent terrorists from entering our country.”

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