Arkansas governor defends decision to accept new refugees

(AP) Arkansas’ governor is defending his decision to continue accepting new refugees despite skepticism from some GOP lawmakers. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Monday challenged lawmakers to avoid creating “fear” about the decision to accept refugees.

Hutchinson told a legislative committee that fewer than 50 refugees will be resettled in Washington County in northwestern Arkansas under his decision.

Arkansas is among 42 states, including Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma, that have said they will continue to accept refugees since the Trump administration issued order in September that gave state and local governments the authority to refuse to accept them for the first time in history.