Marco Rubio Is Having Difficulties
The Junior Senator from the great State of Florida wants to amend the Cuban Adjustment Act. In 1994 the Cuban Refugee Adjustment act was used to allow the issuance of 20,000 visas for Cubans to come to this country. It was hoped or it assumed that there be no more Mariel type exoduses from Cuba with this change in policy.
Cubans can immediately receive SSI, SNAP, Medicaid and TANF. Some of these refugees get their benefits and then return to Cuba ASAP. Senator Rubio is correct in asking how can a political refugee from Cuba travel back and forth to Cuba, and use refugee assistance for those trips back to Cuba. Even a few hundred dollars American goes a long, long way in Havana.
The obvious answer is that some of these folks are economic refugees and they are gaming the Cuban Adjustment Act in a way that was never intended. Senator Marco wants this loophole closed. But he can't get a hearing on his amendment from the Republican Leadership. Long story greatly shortened if we start amending this law this law, somebody might want their amendment included also.
And so goes immigration reform. The current law says if a refugee returns to his country of origin he loses the ability to claim he is a refugee and this could actually affect thousands who received permanent residence status. If that provision of the law were enforced rigorously, that would not be very popular in Miami.
Cubans can immediately receive SSI, SNAP, Medicaid and TANF. Some of these refugees get their benefits and then return to Cuba ASAP. Senator Rubio is correct in asking how can a political refugee from Cuba travel back and forth to Cuba, and use refugee assistance for those trips back to Cuba. Even a few hundred dollars American goes a long, long way in Havana.
The obvious answer is that some of these folks are economic refugees and they are gaming the Cuban Adjustment Act in a way that was never intended. Senator Marco wants this loophole closed. But he can't get a hearing on his amendment from the Republican Leadership. Long story greatly shortened if we start amending this law this law, somebody might want their amendment included also.
And so goes immigration reform. The current law says if a refugee returns to his country of origin he loses the ability to claim he is a refugee and this could actually affect thousands who received permanent residence status. If that provision of the law were enforced rigorously, that would not be very popular in Miami.
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