[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 56 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 56

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States should remain 
   a global leader in welcoming and providing refuge to refugees and 
 asylum seekers and that no person should be banned from entering the 
United States because of their nationality, race, ethnicity, religion, 
            sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             February 7 (legislative day, February 6), 2017

Mr. Leahy (for himself, Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Booker, Mr. Reed, 
 Mr. Carper, Ms. Warren, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Coons, Mr. Van Hollen, Mrs. 
  Gillibrand, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Udall, Mr. Markey, Mr. 
 Wyden, Mr. Bennet, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Franken, Mr. Brown, Mr. Murphy, 
 Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Schatz, Ms. Heitkamp, Mr. Donnelly, Mr. Heinrich, 
  Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Casey, Mr. Peters, and Mr. Schumer) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                            on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States should remain 
   a global leader in welcoming and providing refuge to refugees and 
 asylum seekers and that no person should be banned from entering the 
United States because of their nationality, race, ethnicity, religion, 
            sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender.

Whereas the United States is a country founded on the principles of religious 
        and political freedom;
Whereas hateful rhetoric against refugees and asylum seekers betrays the 
        principles on which the United States was founded;
Whereas for centuries, people from around the world have sought refuge in the 
        United States in pursuit of freedom and protection for themselves and 
        their families;
Whereas people often seek refuge and asylum in the United States to flee war, 
        armed conflict, violence, and religious, ethnic, and political 
        persecution;
Whereas refugees and asylum seekers have been welcomed by towns, cities, and 
        States across the United States;
Whereas refugees and asylum seekers have made their new communities stronger and 
        more vibrant and have positively contributed to the betterment of the 
        United States;
Whereas the United States has a moral obligation to ensure that people fleeing 
        violence and persecution are protected;
Whereas the United States Senate should continue its legacy of bipartisan 
        leadership on refugees and asylum seekers;
Whereas a ban or halt on resettlement may result in prolonged and indefinite 
        family separation;
Whereas executive actions targeting refugees and asylum seekers could place 
        these most vulnerable populations at serious risk of death or injury; 
        and
Whereas refugees are the most thoroughly screened and vetted entrants to the 
        United States, undergoing multiple security checks by the Department of 
        Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State, 
        the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National Counterterrorism 
        Center: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That--
            (1) it is the sense of the Senate that--
                    (A) the United States should remain a global leader 
                in welcoming and providing refuge to refugees and 
                asylum seekers; and
                    (B) no person should be banned from entering the 
                United States because of their nationality, race, 
                ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender 
                identity, or gender;
            (2) the Executive order titled ``Protecting the Nation From 
        Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States'' issued by the 
        President on January 27, 2017, undermines the national interest 
        of the United States; and
            (3) the Senate directs the Secretary of the Senate to 
        transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the President, 
        the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security, the Attorney General, the Director of the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Director of National 
        Intelligence.
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