Oversight to Hold Emergency Hearing on Trump Administration Decision to Deport Critically Ill Children

Statement

Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, announced that the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, which is led by Chairman Jamie Raskin, will hold an emergency hearing on Wednesday, September 11, 2019, on the Trump Administration's decision to end consideration of requests to defer deportation, including for children with critical illnesses.

"The Trump Administration's decision to deport critically ill children was one of the most heartless and ill-conceived actions of Donald Trump's entire presidency," said Cummings when announcing the hearing.

"The officials responsible for this action must be held accountable for their incompetence and their failure to take even the most basic steps to determine the harm that would be caused by this policy," said Raskin.

The hearing is being held in response to numerous requests, including from Committee Member Mark DeSaulnier, who represents Maria Isabel Bueso, and Committee Member Ayanna Pressley, who represents Jonathan Sanchez, both of whom will be testifying on Wednesday.

Also testifying will be officials from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). USCIS sent letters notifying individuals that it would no longer consider deferral requests, including for people with serious medical conditions, and the agency claimed that those decisions would now be made by ICE. ICE publicly denied that it had any plans to take on this role.

On September 2, 2019, the Administration announced that it would reconsider a limited set of deferred action requests that were pending on or before August 7, 2019. The Administration did not explain whether it plans to grant those requests or whether requests submitted after August 7 would be considered at all. Families that applied after August 7 may need to decide within days whether to stay and risk deportation or leave the country and end life-saving treatment for their children.

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