Florence Snyder
We are a nation of immigrants with very short memories. How else to explain HB 427’s frontman David Santiago‘s embrace of a ludicrous and mean-spirited effort to take Florida out of a federal program that assists people fleeing “war, persecution and violence.“
Not so long ago, folks whose name ended in a vowel might be admonished — along with Jews, dogs and Irish — to “keep off the grass.” Yet Santiago and a large crowd of pols whose people arrived here from Someplace Else are hell-bent on taking Florida out of a federal program that assists refugees to settle in to an economy that depends in large measure upon the friendship and goodwill of tourists from Someplace Else.
Florida’s participation in the refugee program has been quietly managed for years by the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Prior to the Era of Extreme Hysteria and Vetting, it operated with a low profile and a high degree of success. Catholic Charities and other organizations not known for harboring “bad hombres” work closely with state authorities and refugee families, and FDLE’s intelligence officers have assured lawmakers that “zero terrorism incidents in Florida can be attributed to refugees.”
While Santiago & Company preen and play dress up as Jason Bourne, FDLE keeps busy investigating genuinely terrifying threats to public safety. Operation Cupid’s Arrow, for instance, targeted dirty old men trolling Craigslist for little girls to sexually abuse. One geezer arrested in the sting was the $161,000 a year associate general counsel for Florida State University. Another was the “Civics Program Coordinator” for the school boys — and girls — in the House of Representatives’ Legislative Page Program.
