According to the Washington Post, more than 31,000 evacuees from Afghanistan arrived in the United States between August 17 and 31. Overall, the administration says it airlifted about 125,000, but it isn’t saying how many will be resettled here. (Think 125,000.) Some of those evacuated were U.S. citizens or legal residents, and some hold special immigrant visas (SIV) or otherwise claim to have worked for the U.S. government in some capacity, but the majority–perhaps the overwhelming majority–are simply considered “vulnerable Afghans” or “Afghans at Risk.”
What is an “Afghan at Risk”? Basically, it’s an Afghani citizen not eligible for an SIV or so-called “Priority-2” or refugee status but who, nevertheless, would like very much to come to America and was lucky enough to cadge a seat on one of those evacuation flights Joe Biden is so proud of.
And they’re still coming. Some of that total of 125,000 are currently waiting in transit sites in Europe and the Middle East for further disposition, and you can guess the final destination each has in mind.
Our government promises that every one will be thoroughly vetted to ensure that no Afghan at Risk presents a security risk for America. “The federal government has established a robust and multi-layered screening and vetting process with dual goals of protecting the homeland and providing protections for vulnerable Afghans,” says DHS spokesperson Sarah Peck. That’s so reassuring.
Upon their arrival at America’s fabled Golden Door, each Afghan at Risk will be given a check for $1,250, courtesy of the American taxpayer.
The Post, of course, laments the paltriness of that sum and the fact that the Afghans at Risk will not receive all the “benefits and services offered to traditional refugees.” It quotes representatives of various relief agencies such as the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) and the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service who say that many billions will be needed to ensure that the Afghans at Risk “can be successfully and safely integrated into the United States.”
Mark Hetfield, president of HIAS, for example, says his “back-of-the-napkin” estimate is, say, $8 billion, for starters, which would bring the Afghans at Risks’ bennies up to what real refugees get. Of course, even that wouldn’t cover many expenses. “They need smartphones,” he said.
Only in America.
For more, see the Washington Post.