WASHINGTON (AP) — A bill aimed at protecting thousands of Venezuelans currently living in the United States from deportation has stalled in the Senate after the Democratic minority urged its approval by unanimous consent.
Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah raised a procedural objection Tuesday to the request by Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin, arguing that more time is needed to review and offer amendments on the bill.
The measure to grant “temporary protected status” passed the House of Representatives last week in a bipartisan vote, though 158 Republicans opposed it.
TPS is usually granted by the Department of Homeland Security to people from countries ravaged by natural disasters or war and lets them remain in the U.S. until the situation improves back home. Venezuela is enveloped in an economic and political crisis.
