Editor’s note: This commentary is by Robert Rich, a fifth generation Vermonter who lives in South Burlington.
[I]f you were one of the many thousands of Vermonters who were understandably hesitant to allow undocumented, unvetted refugees into Vermont after the ISIS terrorism in Paris and San Bernardino, and the mass rapes by refugees in Germany, Gov. Shumlin had a name for you in his State of the State address. It was “un-American.”
Further insulting by inference Vermonters who might have a different view than he, Mr. Shumlin went on to say “Vermonters have a long and proud tradition of rejecting racism, bigotry, bullying, intolerance, and fear.” Mr. Shumlin would have us believe that reluctance with his undocumented refugee program is tantamount to being an intolerant racist bigot, rather than having a rational concern for the safety of your family and community.
Someone should tell Mr. Shumlin that Vermont has a long and proud tradition of our governors treating all Vermonters with dignity and respect.
In this new era of incivility by certain political figures, this is called shaming people into compliance. After all, who wants to be labeled a racist bigot by his own governor? Someone should tell Mr. Shumlin that Vermont has a long and proud tradition of our governors treating all Vermonters with dignity and respect. Someone should also tell him that name-calling is classic bullying.
In his haste to place the immigration agenda of the Obama administration above the rational safety concerns of ordinary Vermonters, Mr. Shumlin says he’s been assured by officials at the White House and State Department that all refugees are properly vetted. Of course, taking this position requires ignoring FBI director James Comey’s Nov. 19 statement that vetting every refugee is “impossible.”
Recently we have witnessed the brutal mass murders of innocent people at the hands of immigrant terrorists and the mass raping of women at the hands of refugees. So even as we desire to extend our hand to those in need, it is rational and normal for people to be concerned with their own safety when considering a massive influx of people of unknown background into their communities. Moreover, it is a fact ISIS has claimed it is planting terrorists among refugees.
Vermont’s state motto is “Freedom and Unity.” Unfortunately our current governor seems not to understand that freedom includes expressing our opinions and concerns without fear of reprisal, and that unity is not promoted by insulting Vermonters for having opinions and concerns different from his own.
Hopefully Vermonters will not concede their Freedom and Unity to a governor who exhibits the behaviors he claims to oppose. Wanting to provide safety to refugees but be safe ourselves while doing so is not intolerant, but the governor’s expecting Vermonters to disregard their own safety for his agenda certainly is.
