Congressional candidate Lavern Spicer says U.S. should turn away Afghan refugees

Image via Twitter

As the Taliban takes over the Afghanistan government, a South Florida congressional candidate believes it’s important to stop a refugee influx.

Lavern Spicer, a Republican running in Florida’s 24^th Congressional District, said letting Afghan refugees into the U.S. brings too much risk.

“Not ONE refugee from Afghanistan needs to come to our country. Not one,” she tweeted. “Call Qatar. Call The UAE. Call Saudi Arabia. Call Egypt. The U.S. and Europe took ALL the Syrian refugees. We can’t do anymore. AMERICA FIRST MEANS AMERICA FIRST.”

Spicer is challenging longtime Rep. Frederica Wilson in what remains Florida’s bluest House districts ahead of next year’s redistricting.

But she offers a glimpse at what the pro-Donald Trump “America First” movement feels about Afghanistan’s developments right now. At least a portion of it.

Spicer also has tweeted President Joe Biden should resign for his handling of Afghanistan. That’s even as some Trump allies like Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Panhandle Republican, has supported a troop withdrawal.

“The fact that no one is even discussing resigning over the Afghanistan debacle goes to show how awful the establishment truly is. I run a beauty salon. People get fired for messing up hair weaves. These people destroyed a country and wasted $2 trillion and get to keep their job?”

She said the U.S. should make sure to provide refuge to those interpreters and others who helped the U.S. following the invasion of the country after 9/11. That’s similar to calls by Rep. Michael Waltz, a St. Augustine Beach Republican who criticized the U.S. departure from the Central Asian nation.

But Spicer said helping those who delivered material aid should be the extent of helping Afghans as the Taliban reseized control.

“The interpreters and other people who helped Americans over there is another story, but we cannot accommodate 38 million people in our country, especially as Taliban, Al-Qaeda, and others will try to fit in and do harm,” she said. “Look at France & Germany and how they’re doing after Syria.”