On Thursday, July 25, the U.S. House of Representatives passed by simple majority the H.R. 549 titled “Venezuela TPS Act of 2019” to grant Venezuelans residing in the U.S. temporary protection.
This vote took place two days after the failed attempt to pass the same legislation with a qualified majority—two thirds. If the legislation has been passed with such majority, it would have directly resulted in a Senate vote. Since not enough Republican representatives—only 37—supported the bill, the House proposed passing it by a simple majority and wait for the Senate to bring it to a vote.
On July 30, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), accompanied by Senator Bob Menéndez (D-NJ), asked for unanimous consent to pass the bipartisan, House-passed bill H.R. 549. However, in a brief appearance, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) opposed the petition. Now the Senate will take a six-week recess and the Venezuela TPS Act will remain on hold.
At IQ Latino we decided to graphically show who supported or rejected the bill. We would like to stress that the Republicans—including the president—fully grasp the problematic Venezuelan crisis and have voiced their desire to help restore democracy in the country. Nonetheless, they have not acted in favor of Venezuelans in U.S. territory.
Analyzing this map is particularly important for the future of Venezuelans in the US. Given the scenario that the Senate passes H.R. 549, the president will have 10 days to either sign it or veto it. In the latter case, the bill will return to the U.S. Congress, where both chambers will have to pass the bill again—this time, with two-thirds of the votes. Having said this, it is important for Venezuelans and Latinos to know which representatives are in favor of their immigrant rights. And to those Venezuelans living in districts where the representative did not vote in favor of H.R. 549, this is a chance for you to contact your representative and share your story.
If you are a Venezuelan who would benefit from H.R. 549, please send us your story to info@iqlatino.org.