Afghan Interpreters In Limbo

For John, BLUF:  We have a duty to those who helped us.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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"Afghan interpreters who served U.S. are in limbo as State Department runs out of visas"

From The Washington Post, on 10 July.  The lede is:

The cases of thousands of Afghan interpreters who worked with the U.S. military and hope to relocate to the United States are in limbo because the government will soon run out of visas designated for the resettlement program, State Department officials said Thursday.

Worried about the welfare of linguists who are under threat for their affiliation with the U.S. government, State Department officials are asking Congress to allow the issuing of more visas during the remainder of the fiscal year and to extend the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, which is set to expire in September.

Of course it is all the fault of the US Congress, for not increasing the number of available visas, but wouldn't you think that an Administration that is processing tens of thousand of illegal immigrants coming in from Mexico, and which claims it can use its pen and cell phone to make things happen, would have fixed this problem by now?  And, per the Reporter, Ernesto Londoño, the Department of State early on slowed this process on its own, adding to the problems.

We actually have some responsibility toward these people and their families.  They put their necks out for us so now we should reciprocate.

Hat tip to Memeorandum.

Regards  —  Cliff