ORLANDO, Fla. – Rep. Darren Soto held a news conference on Wednesday to discuss the case of a mother who was recently reunited with her family after being deported in 2018.
Alejandra Juarez was part of thousands deported from tightening of immigration polices by the Trump administration, but after easing of restrictions by the Biden administration, she was able to return home through humanitarian parole.
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Juarez, who is the wife of a former marine, had lived in the U.S. for 20 years and had previously petitioned for U.S. citizenship when she was deported.
”I honestly thought that I wasn’t going to be able to make it,” Juarez said during Wednesday’s news conference. “We went through all of this for no reason.”
Currently, Juarez’s residential status is temporary and why there’s a fight for a permanent solution.
Soto (Florida-D) said he’s working to gain support for the Protect Patriot Spouses Act.
”While we’re working on a hearing in judiciary, we also plan to try to get it into any reconciliation package,” Soto said. “At the end of the day, this is about reuniting American families.”
Soto called for bipartisan support and said the bill has the endorsement of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. There are also several other bills lawmakers are considering, however the immigration reform requires support from at least 10 republican senators.