TAKE ACTION: Urge Congressional, State, and Local Elected Leaders to Defend Refugees and the U.S. Resettlement Program

On November 20th, the Trump administration sent officials from the Departments of Secretary and Homeland Security to meet with Congress to discuss what had been published on October 31st as the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions (PD) for Fiscal Year 2026. That document set the refugee admissions goal at 7,500 – by far the lowest-ever number in the 45-year history of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. RCUSA’s latest statement is available here.

This meeting ostensibly served as the consultations with Congress that must precede the issuance of the refugee admissions PD. This is a legally required step, but the so-called “consultation” was perfunctory and not conducted, as the law requires, by a cabinet-level official. The administration’s dismissive treatment of U.S. law, on top of a PD that leaves more than 120,000 fully vetted refugees stranded overseas, places the U.S. resettlement program in legal and moral jeopardy, and creates a challenging operating environment for serving refugees fleeing violence and persecution.

We cannot turn a blind eye to the administration’s unjust, disparate treatment of refugees, nor the reverberating impact the administration’s unlawful actions will have on refugees abroad and in the United States.

Your voice matters. It is critical that our national, state, and local elected leaders hear loudly and clearly from their constituents that we want to welcome refugees, regardless of their country of origin, race, or faith tradition, and urge them to call on President Trump to reverse course and restore the refugee admissions program for the most at-risk refugees around the world.

Community Resources:

• Click here for policy background and messaging guidance.
• Click here for a community advocacy toolkit from Church World Service.