As the Israel-Hamas conflict continues in the region, the Biden administration senior officials across various federal agencies have been discussing the possibility of welcoming certain Palestinians from Gaza to the United States as refugees.
This move would offer a permanent safe haven to those fleeing the war-torn region.
At a press conference in Wauchula this week, Florida Gov. DeSantis blasted the notion of bringing refugees from Gaza into the United States.
"There was a report out that Joe Biden is contemplating importing. A bunch of Palestinian Arabs from the Gaza Strip into the United States of America. And Yeah, I didn't even think Biden was crazy enough to do this. Um, that is not in this country's interest," said DeSantis.
"We've seen the reflections in our own Society of people out protesting in favor of Hamas, terrorists. I mean, these are people that cooked babies and ovens while they were raping the baby's mothers. Executing elderly people. We forget about what happened that day on October 7th," DeSantis continued.
According to CBS News, the proposal under consideration involves using the United States Refugee Admissions Program to welcome Palestinians with immediate family members who are American citizens or permanent residents.
These Palestinians, who have managed to escape Gaza and enter neighboring Egypt, would undergo a series of eligibility, medical, and security screenings. If they meet the necessary criteria, they would be granted refugee status and flown to the United States.
"I think if he (Biden) does that, it is not going to benefit the United States of America in any way. It'll just exacerbate a lot of the problems that we're seeing now. You know, look, people can say what they want, it is a free country. But I also think about, what does it say about our society that people would go out and demonstrate and take Hamas's side in this?" said DeSantis.
"You know, that's a sickness that we see on these college campuses, but we also see it in some of these other institutions in our society. And so I think part of what we need to do to unify the country going forward is to have people who actually want to assimilate into America and actually believe in our founding," said DeSantis. "Not people that just want to replicate a lot of these blood feuds that we see in other parts of the world. So our view in Florida on bringing in people from Gaza is no, we do not want to do that here in the state of Florida."
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If the plan to welcome Palestinians from Gaza as refugees is approved, it would mark a significant shift in longstanding U.S. government policy. Since its inception in 1980, the U.S. refugee program has resettled only a small number of Palestinians.
Read: Six Months Have Passed Since Hamas Kidnapped Agam Berger. Her Father, Shlomi Berger Is Broken
Over the past decade, out of more than 400,000 refugees resettled by the U.S., fewer than 600 were Palestinian. In fiscal year 2023, only 56 Palestinian refugees were accepted out of more than 60,000 refugees resettled during that period.
While many Democrats would likely support the plan to welcome Palestinians from Gaza as refugees, it could potentially spark political challenges for the Biden administration. The Israel-Hamas conflict has already exposed rifts within the Democratic Party and triggered protests on college campuses.
Admitting Palestinians as refugees may further polarize communities across America. Additionally, the proposal will face criticism from Republicans, who have been vocal about their concerns regarding immigration and illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Georgia Rep. Andrew Clyde posted on X, “Let me get this straight. Pro-Hamas lunatics have taken over college campuses. And Joe Biden’s response is to consider “welcoming refugees from Gaza”? Absolute disgrace.”
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