Senator Ted Cruz says the illegal immigration policy of separating families ‘Must Stop Now’.
Amid bipartisan cries to fix an immigration policy that separates children from parents, Senator Ted Cruz has announced a plan to introduce comprehensive “emergency legislation” that will keep families together after they are detained for trying to illegally enter the country.
He calls it the Protect Kids and Parents Act
The bill would double the number of immigration judges to 750 and mandate that illegal immigrant families be kept together unless there has been “aggravated criminal conduct” or threat of harm to the children,
The new legislation would also authorize new temporary shelters for immigrant families, and provide for expedited resolution of asylum claims within 14 days.
In a statement, Cruz said: “All Americans are rightly horrified by the images we are seeing on the news, children in tears pulled away from their mothers and fathers,” Cruz said. “This must stop. Now.”
Cruz said children are often the biggest victims of illegal immigration.
All 49 Senate Democrats are supporting “The Keep Families Together Act”, introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. A plan that many say is poorly written and will allow many criminals, whether an immigrant or not, to evade prosecution.
Cruz’s announcement came shortly after the White House said Congress needed to act to ensure children were not separated from their parents.