Trump vows to safeguard Christians, but what about Christian refugees

SALT LAKE CITY — Ex-President Donald Trump has vowed to shield Christians from religious oppression, but his ‌refugee strategies could potentially undermine this commitment.

A recent study ⁣by World Relief and Open Doors, two faith-oriented nonprofit groups, reveals that over 365 ‌million Christians — 1 in 7 Christians globally — are subjected to severe ​religious ⁣persecution. In the⁢ fiscal year 2024, the United States admitted nearly 30,000 Christian refugees escaping countries with ‌intense anti-Christian persecution, the highest number since 2016.

However, Trump,⁢ if ‌victorious, has pledged to halt all refugee resettlement in the U.S. from day ⁤one — effectively barring thousands of ⁣Christians who could otherwise find sanctuary in the U.S.

“This is, naturally, a matter of great concern to‍ us,” stated Matt Soerens, the vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief. “We certainly do not wish to ‍see the doors of the United ‍States shut on those escaping persecution due to their faith, which is what suspending all refugee⁤ admissions would entail.”

Defending U.S. Christians⁤ is a key aspect of the 2024 Republican Party platform. If Trump prevails, the platform commits to a federal task force that would “probe all forms of ​illegal discrimination,‍ harassment, and persecution against⁢ Christians in America.” ⁤It also vows to⁢ employ “rigorous vetting”⁢ to prevent “Christian-hating” immigrants from entering the country.

However, Trump’s ⁣strategy would also exclude Christians escaping persecution. In speeches and social media posts, ‍Trump has pledged to halt all refugee resettlement in the U.S. on his first ⁣day in office. “As President, I will instantly terminate the migrant invasion of ‌America,” he stated in a Sept. 15 post on X, adding that he ⁢would also “suspend‌ refugee resettlement.” During a⁣ July ⁤rally in Minnesota, Trump pledged⁢ to “reinstate the travel ban, ‍suspend refugee admissions,⁣ halt ‌the resettlement,⁤ and keep the terrorists the hell out of our country.”

Trump supporters advocate for a pause or reduction in refugee resettlement

The concept of drastically reducing humanitarian immigration has gained traction among Trump’s supporters. Stephen Miller, Trump’s chief immigration adviser, has consistently argued that legal immigration should be reduced ‌in a second Trump administration, including a halt on all refugee resettlement.‌ Vivek Ramaswamy, ​who dropped his brief presidential campaign to endorse‌ Trump, has advocated for the refugee cap ⁢to be set to “zero” or “near zero.”

“I believe we need pure merit-based immigration,” Ramaswamy told the Deseret News last year. “We prioritize the interests of our homeland first.”

During Trump’s‌ first term, the resettlement of refugees fleeing anti-Christian persecution drastically decreased.‍ In the fiscal year 2016,⁤ over 32,000 Christian ‍refugees were resettled from countries on Open Doors’ ​World Watch List, which ranks the most dangerous places for ‍Christians. By ⁣the fiscal year 2018, that number had fallen to 11,529; by the fiscal year 2020,‌ it was 5,390.

The U.S. president has the sole authority to set the annual refugee admissions limit. In⁢ 2020, Trump set the refugee cap at 15,000, the lowest level since the Refugee ⁣Act of 1980 gave the president the power ‌to determine ‍the limit. The highest level, in‌ the fiscal year 1980 under President Jimmy Carter, was 231,700.

In 2022, President Joe Biden set the limit at 125,000. In the fiscal year 2024, over 100,000 total refugees were resettled within the U.S. for the first time⁤ since 2016.

It took time to reach that level: ​Even when Biden‍ increased the​ annual cap for resettlement, ‍only about 26,000 were resettled in his‌ first full fiscal year in office and 60,000 in his second.‌ “It’s not just a switch that you turn off‍ and on,” Soerens said. After the Trump administration lowered ⁣the refugee cap, many​ of the federally funded refugee⁣ resettlement agencies were forced to lay off staff or cut back services. Rebuilding the capacity to resettle large numbers of‍ refugees — even after the⁢ ceiling has been raised — is a heavy lift, Soerens said.

“Signing a ⁣piece of paper takes a few seconds,” ‍he said. “But rebuilding a program that’s been⁢ almost entirely shut down — which is what⁤ we experienced between 2017 and 2020 — takes‍ a long time,”⁢ he explained.

Nadine Maenza, president of the International Religious Freedom Secretariat, noted that ‌the ⁢U.S.’ efforts to resettle refugees sets the tone for the world. “When the ⁣U.S. ​drops their (refugee admission) numbers,‌ countries around the world all drop their numbers,” Maenza said in a statement. “So when we close our doors, guess what happens? Other countries close their doors, and‌ it becomes an even larger problem in the world.”

It’s ⁤unclear if Trump’s resettlement pause would be temporary, or if it would endure throughout​ his​ four-year term.

Soerens urged ​whoever wins the presidential election — be it Trump or Vice President ‌Kamala Harris — to​ take seriously the ​charge to protect persecuted Christians. “This shouldn’t be a​ Republican or Democratic issue. ​This is an American issue,” he said. “This⁣ is an opportunity, if we believe in ​international religious freedom, to stand with those who’ve been persecuted in countries that deny that freedom to people.”