Don Barnett Commentary: A Republican Win Will Protect Quality of Life in Tennessee

Tennesseans are big-hearted. In surveys, our state is routinely ranked as one of the nation’s friendliest. That helps explain the net inflow of Americans from other states to Tennessee. The state is also a popular destination for people from other countries. If the Democrats win the White House and the Senate, immigration to the United States and Tennessee will be vastly expanded.

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272,000 Legal Immigrants Arrived in the U.S. in 2016 with Entitlement to Welfare Programs Like U.S. Citizens

272,000 legal immigrants arrived in the United States during 2016 with an entitlement to the full menu of welfare programs, just like any U.S. citizen, attendees were told at the Conservative Caucus in Murfreesboro on Saturday.

The information was presented by one of the afternoon’s speakers, Don Barnett, a fellow with the Center for Immigration Studies who has followed refugee resettlement for over 20 years.

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Welfare for All: Center for Immigration Studies’ Don Barnett Details Refugee Resettlement Cost Burden on American Taxpayers

On Wednesday’s Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy welcomed Don Barnett in the studio to speak about the cost effects of illegal immigration and refugee resettlement on the American taxpayer.

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Refugees Get Full Access to U.S. Welfare Programs, Expert Says

  One out of five legal immigrants in this country in recent years has come here as a client of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement — and they arrive with instant access to all welfare programs the United States has to offer. This, according to Don Barnett,  a fellow with the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Immigration Studies and a resident of Williamson County. Barnett spoke in Lebanon Monday as part of  The Tennessee Star Wilson County Town Hall on Refugee Resettlement at the Lebanon D.T. McCall and Sons’ location. Barnett delivered an extensive and detailed presentation on the history and costs of the Refugee Admissions Program, which began 40 years ago with the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980. More than 3 million refugees have been legally resettled in the United States under that program over four decades, Barnett said. The Office of Refugee Resettlement is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. “In 2016 we had 212,000 individuals with instant access to the welfare system,” Barnett told audience members. In 2016, 85,000 of those 212,000 entered through the federal Refugee Admissions Program, while the remainder came through other programs. “In addition, there’s another category called…

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State Senator Kerry Roberts Weighs in on Governor Lee’s Refugee Stance and the Tennessee General Assembly

Live from Music Row Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – Leahy was joined in the studio during the program’s second hour by Senator Kerry Roberts of Tennessee.

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