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Stories about Pope Francis, the 266th pope of the Roman Catholic Church.

Sen. Murphy Agrees With Pope's Refugee Message

Office of Senator Murphy

During the first ever papal address to Congress, Pope Francis called the current refugee crisis in Europe the worst the world has seen since World War II.

Francis told lawmakers on Thursday how he thinks the refugee crisis can be solved in one simple phrase.

“If we want security, let us give security,” he said.

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, agrees.

“That’s the pitch that I’ve been making on the refugee crisis,” he said. “This isn’t just about doing the right thing from a position of conscience. It’s about recognizing that we will lose credibility in the rest of the world if we’re not perceived as being part of the solution in the refugee crisis. If we want security here at home, then we have to provide security to people who are seeking it abroad. I thought that was a great turn of phrase, something I may try to steal in the coming days and weeks.”

The United Nations estimates 4 million people have fled Syria in the past four years.

U.S. State Department announced earlier this week that the U.S. would accept 15,000 more refugees from around the world next year, and 30,000 more the year after that. Many of the refugees would be from Syria.

Murphy has said the U.S. needs to take in at least 50,000 Syrian refugees to make a meaningful difference.

Cassandra Basler, a former senior editor at WSHU, came to the station by way of Columbia Journalism School in New York City. When she's not reporting on wealth and poverty, she's writing about food and family.