|
|
| Dear Friend, |
For Maria Isabel Bueso, the Trump administration's cruel and abrupt termination of medical deferred action is a death sentence.
"If I'm sent back, I will die," Maria testified at the Oversight Committee last week.
Maria was invited to come to the United States when she was seven years old to participate in a clinical trial for her rare, life-threatening illness.
Her participation in the clinical trial helped lead to FDA approval for groundbreaking treatment for her condition - helping any American with the same illness.
I asked Ms. Bueso what scared her the most about returning to Guatemala. She told me: "It's very overwhelming and devastating - just thinking about, you're going to die, when you have still so many dreams and hopes for your life." |
|
Maria has lived here, legally, for more than 16 years, submitting medical deferred action requests so she can continue receiving the lifesaving treatment she helped get approved.
That treatment is not available in Guatemala. And a new policy change by the Trump administration - the elimination of medical deferred action for most immigrants - means Maria is at risk of being deported there.
With my Democratic colleagues, I will keep fighting this decision by the Trump administration.
[Watch: The Rachel Maddow Show covers our Oversight hearing with Ms. Bueso]
Also this past week:
- I voted to pass legislation in the U.S. House to protect our coasts, banning oil and gas development off the Atlantic coast, Pacific coast, and in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico.
- At an Oversight Committee hearing, I asked executives of three companies responsible for exposing firefighters, military servicemembers and the American public to harmful PFAS chemical if they are planning any type of compensation to harmed victims. They said no.
- I continued advocating for humanitarian disaster funding for the Bahamas, and pushing the Trump administration to ease visa and other entry requirements for Bahamians impacted by Hurriane Dorian.
It is an honor to represent you in Washington.
Sincerely,
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Member of Congress
|
|
|
