Trump's Action in Syria Is 'Just the Latest Blip on a Deeper Story'

The Trump administration sees no hypocrisy in bombing Syria while closing America’s borders to Syrian refugees.

“From a humanitarian standpoint, [we are] ensuring that we create an environment that provides a safe place for them to ultimately remain,” said White House press secretary Sean Spicer in press conference on Monday. The administration is “ensuring that there are places that are free from violence and places free to gather safely … Everyone would agree the last thing they want to do is leave.”

For the American aid organizations working with Syrian refugees in the U.S. and overseas, though, this tension is very real. Leaders of some of these groups, especially those who are Syrian American, feel grateful that the United States government struck a military base in Syria last week after a chemical-weapons attack more than 80 Syrian civilians. But