Bad news for people seeking asylum in US
NEW YORK - Those huddled masses yearning to breathe free should not hold their breath waiting for passage to America, which is setting a record this year for refusing sanctuary to eligible asylum seekers.
The United States will admit about 25,000 refugees by the end of the current budget year, a low for a nation founded by people fleeing persecution.
Experts blame both terrorism fears and an obsolete asylum programme that still lists 'Soviets' as one of the top five nationalities that deserve US protection.
The total number of resettlements as of Sept 16 - the current fiscal year concludes at the end of this month - is only half the 50,000 admissions quota approved by President George W. Bush for 2003. That ceiling itself was a new low.
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