Democratic Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth introduced a bill that would block members of the United States military from being deported.
The Military Family Parole in Place Act would codify an executive branch program that prevents service members and their parents, spouses, or children from being deported to their home countries following an immigration violation.
The current executive branch policy, “Parole in Place,” allows military families to address immigration violations from inside the U.S. temporarily.
The bill would allow only family members to be denied parole in the U.S. if the deportation is authorized by heads of both the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense.
If they agreed that a deportation should move forward, they must provide a public reasoning for their decision along with the Department of Homeland Security.
Duckworth, who is a combat veteran from the Iraq War, said, “Our troops serving overseas should be focused on doing their jobs, not worrying about whether their family members will be deported.”
She added, “Ending these deportation protections would be a cruel, inhumane and a direct threat to our military readiness, which is why I’m introducing this legislation that would support our men and women in combat by protecting their families from deportation.”
Duckworth’s bill is co-sponsored by six other Democratic senators.
