Accept 1 lac Syrian refugees

Seventy-two House Democrats joined human rights groups on Friday in calling for the US to admit 100,000 Syrian refugees next fiscal year, saying the White House's proposal to take in 10,000 of them is far from enough.

The members said the US should accept 200,000 refugees total in the fiscal year that begins Oct 1, echoing a number put forward by groups that help with and advocate for resettlement.

"We have always been a country that has demonstrated extraordinary leadership in responding to humanitarian crises around the world, and this is a crisis," Rep David Cicilline, who organized the letter, said in an interview. "Ten thousand [refugees] is a step in the right direction but it does not, in my view, respond adequately to the magnitude of the crisis."

White House officials say the most important response is a humanitarian one, noting the US has already given about $4 billion to help Syrian refugees abroad. But the announcement Thursday that Obama aims to take in 10,000 Syrians next fiscal year indicates the administration is feeling pressure from lawmakers, outside groups and Americans who say resettlement needs to be a bigger part of the equation, particularly as shocking photos of the danger refugees go through while seeking safety dominate the news.

The administration isn't going to find a figure that will please everyone. On one side are those who say admitting 10,000 Syrians to a country of 320 million people is a pittance compared with countries like Germany, which has a population of 80 million and pledged to admit 800,000 refugees. On the other are those who say it's impossible to take in more people from the Middle East without risking American security -- an argument that could have salience even though Syrian refugees go through an 18- to 24-month screening process.