Senate Democrats use Trump card to block Syrian refugees bill
The Senate defeated GOP-backed restrictions on refugee resettlement.
Syrian refugees can thank Donald Trump for helping keep America's doors open.
The Senate voted 55-43 Jan. 20 to suspend the admission of Syrian and Iraqi refugees, short of the 60 votes needed to move the bill forward. Democrats repeatedly invoked the recent uptick in Islamophobic comments — particularly from the Republican presidential front-runner — ahead of the party-line vote.
"It is unfortunate that the fear and xenophobia being peddled by some Republican candidates for president is now being given time on the Senate floor," Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said in a statement. "Instead of … responding to real threats to our national security — like our failure to track visa overstays or prevent terrorists from buying guns — today we are debating a strawman inspired by Donald Trump’s baseless rhetoric."
"Get beyond the screaming rhetoric of the presidential campaign," Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., urged on the Senate floor, "and sit down and listen to their stories, and you will realize that these are people who are desperate, who are looking just for an opportunity to be safe."
