McNally

Tennessee Legislators to Pursue Lawsuit Blocking Refugee Resettlement

The election of Donald Trump as president may change United States policy on refugees but is no reason for Tennessee legislators to stop pushing a lawsuit aimed at blocking resettlement in Tennessee, Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris said. Speaking to the Senate Republican Caucus last week, Norris said some have questioned whether the “Trump effect” makes the lawsuit unnecessary. “My response is full speed ahead,” said Norris, who earlier this year sponsored a resolution adopted by the Legislature that called on Attorney General Herbert Slatery to file a lawsuit against refugee resettlement in the state after President Obama announced plans to allow 10,000 Syrian war refugees into the county. Slatery declined to do so, saying such an effort would be “based upon untested, novel theories” of law. The Thomas Moore Law Firm, which regularly advocates in courts for conservative causes, has been named to act on Tennessee’s behalf in pursuing the lawsuit at no cost to the state. Norris and other Republican legislators pushing the lawsuit say the federal government has failed to properly consult with …