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House blocks refugee program, with Dem support

WASHINGTON - The House approved a plan Thursday to effectively stall the arrivals of Syrians and Iraqis seeking refuge in the United States, as 47 Democrats joined Republicans in a rebuke to President Obama and a sign of how the Paris terrorist attacks have stoked security fears.

Rep. Chaka Fattah wants to be on the right side of history.
Rep. Chaka Fattah wants to be on the right side of history.Read more

WASHINGTON - The House approved a plan Thursday to effectively stall the arrivals of Syrians and Iraqis seeking refuge in the United States, as 47 Democrats joined Republicans in a rebuke to President Obama and a sign of how the Paris terrorist attacks have stoked security fears.

The measure, which requires tighter screening for applicants from those countries, passed by 289-137, a wide-enough margin to override a promised presidential veto. The result piled pressure on Democrats in the Senate, where the bill's fate will not be decided until after the weeklong Thanksgiving break.

Rep. Donald Norcross of South Jersey was among Democrats to break with the president and support the measure, despite a last-minute visit and appeals from Obama chief of staff Denis McDonough and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson.

"Our first and most important job is to keep the American country safe," Norcross said before the vote. The system for screening Syrians is "pretty good," he said, but "the issue is, we have to have a perfect system."

The bill requires the FBI to certify the background investigation of each refugee from Syria and Iraq. The leaders of that agency, the Department of Homeland Security, and the director of National Intelligence also would have to certify that each refugee was not a security threat.

Many lawmakers question whether the United States can effectively screen people arriving from chaotic countries that lack reliable bureaucracies or a significant American presence.

"We need to increase accountability," said a statement from Rep. Ryan Costello (R., Pa.). Like him, nearly every Republican, and all of them from the Philadelphia area, backed the bill.

The vote came as officials in Washington and in many statehouses sought to show the public that they are serious about security and preventing terrorism.

The Paris attacks also continued to roil the U.S. presidential race. Two senators running for the Republican nomination, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul, each attempted procedural moves to force votes on their own ideas for getting tougher with refugees.

Hillary Rodham Clinton, the leading Democratic contender, laid out her own plan to fight the Islamic State, including a no-fly zone to protect Syrians, more use of Special Operations forces, and increased airstrikes.

Democrats say setting up the new vetting system would take so long that it would halt the intake of Syrians and Iraqis fleeing homes threatened by war and the Islamic State, the group that has claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) accused Republicans who pushed the bill of "fearmongering and bigotry."

"We cannot repeat the dark days of the 1930s, when many Americans resolved to turn away the helpless refugees fleeing Hitler," Reid said, "or our imprisoning of innocent Japanese Americans during World War II."

Said Rep. Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.): "I'd rather be on the right side of history, even if that is the wrong side politically."

Reid pledged that Senate Democrats would try to block the move to stop resettlements, but Republicans may have leverage.

With a must-pass spending bill due by Dec. 11, the GOP could attach the refugee measure to that legislation and dare Democrats to vote against it - a move that would lead to a government shutdown.

Administration officials say Syrian refugees already go through the most rigorous vetting of any foreign nationals coming into the U.S., an 18- to 24-month process that involves multiple agencies.

The House bill would "unacceptably hamper our efforts to assist some of the most vulnerable people in the world," the White House said in its vow to veto the bill.

Of the 2,174 Syrian refugees who have come to the U.S. since Sept. 11, 2001, none has been arrested or deported on terrorism-related grounds, the administration said. Obama wants to admit 10,000 more.

House members who supported the bill "will be able to go home to their district over Thanksgiving, act as if they were tough," said Rep. Brendan Boyle, a first-term Democrat whose district includes Philadelphia and Montgomery County. "And yet, what we did really achieves nothing."

The bigger threat, Boyle said, comes from European citizens who become radicalized and can easily travel to the United States.

While at least one of the Paris attackers is believed to have traveled with Syrian refugees, it is not clear whether he was an actual refugee. Most of the other assailants were European.

Senate Democrats hope to turn attention to that issue after Thanksgiving. On Thursday, they pledged to introduce a measure, with some Republican support, to tighten security checks on the visa waiver program, which allows visitors from 38 countries - including Germany, Belgium, and France - to travel to the U.S. with less stringent screening.

A key difference is that visitors under the waiver program do not have to meet with U.S. officials abroad before coming here. Around 20 million people use the program to visit the U.S. each year.

A French citizen, for example, could travel to Syria, return to France, and then travel to the U.S. under the program, said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D., Calif.).

"Our bill will be a straightforward solution that can make a real difference," said Feinstein, who plans to introduce the bill after the holiday.

Sen. Jeff Flake (R., Ariz.) has signed on as a cosponsor. Some other Republicans agree the program may pose the greater security risk.

jtamari@phillynews.com

@JonathanTamari