In the wake of the Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in Paris, at least two dozen American governors have expressed concern over allowing Syrian refugees to relocate in their states.
While state governments often do play a small role in helping to resettle refugees, the governors don't have much choice in this case, said immigration expert Stephen H. Legomsky, JD, DPhil, the John S. Lehmann University Professor at the School of Law at Washington University in St. Louis.
"The one thing I feel very comfortable saying is there is absolutely no constitutional power for a state to exclude anyone from its territories," Legomsky told USA Today.
Legomsky is former chief counsel of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security agency that would be charged with implementing Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA), and more recently senior counsel to the Secretary of Homeland Security on immigration issues.
"The states have no power whatsoever to restrict travel into their territories by anyone. That law has been clear for more than 100 years," Legomsky told the Huffington Post.
Editor’s note: Members of the media interested in interviewing Legomsky can reach him by email at [email protected] or by phone at 314-935-6469 (office) or 314-779-4713 (cell).
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