Obama decries US 'hysteria' over refugees

US President Barack Obama on Tuesday slammed US domestic "hysteria" about the security risks posed by Syrian refugees, accusing his political foes of fearing "widows and orphans".

"We don't make good decisions if it's based on hysteria or an exaggeration of risks," Obama said as state governors moved to curb refugee flows. "Apparently they are scared of widows and orphans coming into the United States of America."

US Republicans took steps on Tuesday aimed at freezing White House programmes that resettle Syrian and Iraqi refugees in America, saying they want stricter security measures in place in the wake of the deadly Paris attacks.

House Speaker Paul Ryan called for a "pause" in the Syrian scheme, joining more than half of state governors urging Obama to suspend the programme and fully review the vetting process to ensure that would-be attackers do not slip into the country as refugees.

"Our nation has always been welcoming but we cannot let terrorists take advantage of our compassion," Ryan told reporters.

"This is a moment where it's better to be safe than to be sorry."

Some Democrats shared similar views, including senior Senator Chuck Schumer who acknowledged it might be "necessary" to pause the programme amid a review.

Suspected Islamic State (IS) gunmen killed at least 129 people and injured hundreds in coordinated attacks in Paris last Friday.

The discovery of a Syrian passport near the body of one Paris assailant has revived Europe's debate on how hard a line to take on the record refugee influx, and stirred sentiment among US lawmakers and governors that rebels are seeking to blend in with refugee masses in order to strike later.

But AFP on Tuesday quoted an anonymous French investigator as saying all indications suggested that the passport may have belonged to a soldier killed several months ago. The source told AFP that the passport was either taken from the dead man or fabricated based on a real identity.

Republican leaders and House committee chairs appeared to be coalescing around draft legislation that would freeze the programme for Syrian as well as Iraqi refugees. 

It would require the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence to concur that each refugee is not a security threat, according to an aide to number-two House Republican Kevin McCarthy.

The FBI director also would need to certify that a background check has been done on each refugee before they are admitted to the United States.

"We need to ensure that we're properly vetting these refugees," said House Republican Richard Hudson, an early architect of the legislation.

McCarthy said he wants a vote on the bill by Thursday.

Should the legislation pass it could be a major roadblock for Obama's programme aimed at taking in up to 10,000 Syrian refugees in fiscal year 2016.

Another bill, by presidential hopeful Senator Ted Cruz, reportedly would ban all Syrian Muslims from resettling in the United States.

After his chamber held a moment of silence for the Paris victims, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and others said they favoured a "moratorium" on Syrian refugees.

He said he was in contact with Ryan and the White House on how to proceed.

'A new low'

The US administration defended its four-decade refugee policy, insisting that screening process was sufficiently stringent.

The White House held a 90-minute call with a bipartisan group of 34 governors, urging them to avoid measures that would block Middle Eastern refugees from entering the country. 

But officials acknowledged they were wary of losing public support and the longstanding bipartisan congressional backing for the program.

"This is a very precious thing, and in the current day and age it has been a rare thing, so I hope that that continues," a senior administration official said.

The issue has become a political football in the race for the White House. Several Republican candidates including Donald Trump and Ben Carson have announced their strong opposition to the refugee program.

Trump, in an interview with ABC News' "20/20" program to air Friday, said he would ban all Syrian refugees - Christians and Muslims - from entering the country.

"The problem is, we don't (know) if they're Christian or not," Trump said in excerpts released by ABC, adding that the screening process needs to be "superior".

The top Democrat in the race, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, lashed out at suggestions from Cruz and Jeb Bush that aid be prioritised for Christian refugees over Muslims.

"The idea that we'd turn away refugees because of religion is a new low," she tweeted.

Washington State governor Jay Inslee shared similar sentiments and made his position clear on the welcoming of refugees to his state:

“Sadly, in the wake of these attacks, many people channel their fear and anger against ISIS (IS) into fear and anger against Muslims. At a time when millions of Syrian families are attempting to flee ISIS and seek refuge in safer parts of the world, including the United States, there are some who say it’s time to close our doors to people whose lives are in peril,” Inslee said in a statement.

“Washington will continue to be a state that welcomes those seeking refuge from persecution, regardless of where they come from or the religion they practice. We have been and will continue to be a state that embraces compassion and eschews fear mongering, as evidenced so well by Republican Gov. Dan Evans’ welcoming of Vietnamese refugees here in the 1970s.”

More than four million Syrians - around a fifth of the country's population - have fled their homeland since the war began.

Between 1 October 2011 and 14 November of this year, the United States has admitted 2,159 Syrian refugees, according to the State Department.

That slow pace is due largely to the comprehensive screening process that is conducted in refugee camps in Egypt, Jordan and Turkey and takes 18 to 24 months.

But many of the governors revolting against the refugees expressed security concerns about the very vetting process the State Department and White House assure is so vigorous.

It was not clear what practical effect state-level opposition would have on administration policy.

"This is a federal program carried out under the authority of federal law and refugees arriving in the US are protected by the Constitution and federal law," a State Department official said. The refugees "are required to apply for legal status within year" and are "free to move anywhere in the country".

Legal experts say that the legal precedent might be on the administration's side, reported nbcnews.com.

Xavier Becerra, a senior House Democrat, insisted that 750,000 refugees have been resettled in America since 9/11, and "not one has been arrested on domestic terrorism charges in the United States".

But McConnell appeared to dispute that, citing the case of an Iraqi man living in Kentucky "who came into the US as a refugee, vetted, who ended up being arrested for plotting a terrorist attack".