First District Supervisor candidate Angela Valles has condemned the "dumping" of Syrian refugees into Victorville, saying she would sue the federal government and seek to cut off refugee welfare benefits after it was discovered 23 Syrian immigrants have resettled in the city this year.

Valles also accused her opponent, San Bernardino County Supervisor Robert Lovingood, of being "either oblivious to the placement of unvetted Syrian refugees in our community" or actively covering it up. A campaign statement she released Tuesday said that the federal government was required to consult with local jurisdictions before settling refugees, citing a hard-line immigration reform group as its source of this premise.

Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is described as an extremist group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, with leaders who "have ties to white supremacist groups and eugenicists and have made many racist statements."

Valles, a Hispanic, said that Tuesday's statement came from her campaign office and that "I don't support (the extremism FAIR is accused of) whatsoever," but she added that the broader issue of refugee resettlement deserved to be reviewed, particularly amid a terrorism threat and when local leaders have emphasized public safety as staples of their platforms.

"All I'm saying is we should be made aware of this," she said.

Lovingood fired back Thursday, calling into question Valles' judgment and grasp of the supervisor's role.

"I would like to add clarity to the fact that the responsibility of the position I hold is just to serve the constituents," Lovingood said, "and when an individual has a misunderstanding of what the responsibilities are of the office they seek and, really, is willing to say anything to grab a headline, I think that explains my opponent."

The revelation that 23 Syrian refugees re-settled in Victorville this year, according to the Refugee Processing Center, was first reported by Valles' campaign. She said she believed "America comes first" and that any aid provided to refugees should be confined to occurring within their own country — not here — as to not "jeopardize" locals.

But Valles' highly publicized broach of this issue has been met by a staunch rejection of her premise.

County spokesman David Wert said he was unaware of any process by which counties or cities are formally advised of refugee arrivals by the federal or state government. Additionally, there is no legal mechanism by which local jurisdictions can affect the immigration of refugees into their backyard.

As he told the Daily Press last year in a story about no Syrian refugees at that time having re-settled into the county, Wert said the county does indeed provide health services to some refugees through a state contract, yet county officials do not track data on program participants.

On Tuesday night, Victorville Councilman Ryan McEachron requested City Manager Doug Robertson address Valles' campaign statement.

"It's easy to have your own opinion, but not your own facts," McEachron said during the Council meeting, "and in this case, it's just a complete distortion of facts. It's lies, and I'd like you to address it."

Robertson reiterated points in an internal memo he sent out earlier Tuesday, concluding that city staff found the federal government did not need authority to place refugees, nor were they required to provided notice.

Earlier this year, the City Councils of Hesperia and Adelanto passed resolutions against refugees resettling within their city limits, but Robertson suggested those moves were tantamount to mere public denunciations.

"Although passing a resolution may provide some public relations — assuming the public agrees with whatever the resolution says — the federal government won't pay any attention to it because it doesn't matter what the city thinks," Robertson said.

San Bernardino County Sheriff's Victorville Station Capt. Sam Lucia acknowledged that such resettlement was "completely out of our hands" and local law enforcement could not enforce any locally created law.

But Valles, who lauded city officials in Hesperia and Adelanto for taking a stance, suggested it was more than a coincidence that refugees had not been placed in those cities as she drew a line to those earlier resolutions.

In his memo, Robertson said he felt it necessary to address Valles' campaign statement because "given the conservative nature of the High Desert, this will surely get some attention." On Thursday, Valles was interviewed by Fox 11 News for a segment scheduled to air Friday.

Shea Johnson can be reached at 760-955-5368 or SJohnson@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DP_Shea.