Latest news with #WassermanSchultz
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
A member of Congress made a surprise visit to Krome. What she saw left her concerned
A member of Congress who made an unannounced visit to the Krome North Service Processing Center in southwest Miami-Dade County said migrants in deportation proceedings are being subjected to overcrowded and inhumane conditions where they are forced to carry out bodily functions without privacy. 'It's wall to wall people here and it's very troubling,' U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat who represents parts of Broward Country, said after emerging from a three-hour visit Thursday inside the detention facility. Wasserman Schultz said the detention center, which made headlines recently after two men in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody died inside, was built to hold 882 people. On Thursday, there were 1,111 detainees. There were two tents on the property to accommodate overflow. 'This is not a nice place. There's no one in your family that you would ever want to be here, not only because you wouldn't want your family detained, but because you wouldn't want anyone that you care about to be in the conditions that these people are being held in,' she said. 'They have people who are being held and are forced to sleep on cots in between the bunks.' As part of President Donald Trump's mass deportation plans, the Department of Homeland Security has been ramping up arrests. The expansion has worried immigration advocates and members of Congress like Wasserman Schultz who have been increasingly concerned following the two deaths at the Krome detention center and another of a Haitian woman at the Broward Transitional Center. While the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's Office ruled that the two men at Krome died of 'natural' causes, a Miami Herald investigation found evidence of what experts described as questionable medical care for the two immigrants. Wasserman Schultz said while she could not say that cruelty was taking place inside Krome or that immigrants' were being denied due process — she saw rooms where they could meet with lawyers — the conditions were nevertheless disturbing. That includes hearing from migrants how sometimes there are plans to move them away despite an upcoming hearing. She saw multiple small cells, she said, where between 25 and 35 men are held 'for upwards of 48 hours.' 'The consensus was that they are there in those rooms with all of those other men, eating, sleeping and going to the bathroom in that room … sleeping on the floor, having to urinate and defecate in front of other people in that in that small room,' the congresswoman said. Even when they shower there is no privacy, the men complained. 'The two constituents I spoke to definitely described conditions that were extremely unpleasant, not conditions that you would want anyone you care about to be subjected to,' she said. Wasserman Schultz arrived at the facility after 3 p.m. The staff was surprised by her unannounced visit, she said, but she was allowed in without incident after having to wait for about 20 minutes. There was some chatter about whether she could speak to detainees, but she pushed back and was able to talk to two detainees — a Cuban national and Jamaican national — who lived in her district. The reason she was able to show up unannounced is because of a 2020 law she helped write that prevents DHS from interfering in congressional oversight, she said. 'I can tell you that some of the things I saw would not have looked like that if I had given them notice,' she said. Still, as she walked the facility, she 'got inconsistent answers depending on who I was speaking to and asking the question to and from the leadership that was walking me through, to the personnel that I was talking to.' This was the case, she said, when she inquired about the two detainees' deaths. Wasserman Schultz said her concerns about the conditions of detainees in custody are fueled by a number of factors. One is the push by the Trump administration to allocate $45 billion in the federal budget to expand immigrant detention facilities and services. The 'big, ugly bill,' she said, was 'rammed through last week in the middle of the night by one vote,' and the administration is going to attempt to ramp up and process even more detainees. 'When they do that, you start to fill up even more facilities like Krome,' the congresswoman said. 'Then the conditions are going to get decidedly worse.' Wasserman Schultz, who represents the largest district of Venezuelan-American voters in the country, said another concern she has is the administration's track record on immigration. 'The administration is lying when they say that they're really only prioritizing criminals. I am getting calls from constituents who say, U.S. citizen children have been deported along with their undocumented parents,' she said. 'Trump has absolutely no regard for the law. He is the most anti-immigrant president in American history, and he is hell bent on essentially bleaching, bleaching out the United States.' Wasserman Schultz said she plans to aggressively engage DHS as a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee 'to ensure that we can make conditions better in these facilities and also fight back on their outrageous extreme immigration policy that are not targeting people who are criminals and who are here to do anything other than to make a better way of life for themselves and their families, and have credible fear from countries like Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba —places that are in no condition to send anyone back to right now.'
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
A member of Congress made a surprise visit to Krome. What she saw left her concerned
A member of Congress who made an unannounced visit to the Krome North Service Processing Center in southwest Miami-Dade County said migrants in deportation proceedings are being subjected to overcrowded and inhumane conditions where they are forced to carry out bodily functions without privacy. 'It's wall to wall people here and it's very troubling,' U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat who represents parts of Broward Country, said after emerging from a three-hour visit Thursday inside the detention facility. Wasserman Schultz said the detention center, which made headlines recently after two men in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody died inside, was built to hold 882 people. On Thursday, there were 1,111 detainees. There were two tents on the property to accommodate overflow. 'This is not a nice place. There's no one in your family that you would ever want to be here, not only because you wouldn't want your family detained, but because you wouldn't want anyone that you care about to be in the conditions that these people are being held in,' she said. 'They have people who are being held and are forced to sleep on cots in between the bunks.' As part of President Donald Trump's mass deportation plans, the Department of Homeland Security has been ramping up arrests. The expansion has worried immigration advocates and members of Congress like Wasserman Schultz who have been increasingly concerned following the two deaths at the Krome detention center and another of a Haitian woman at the Broward Transitional Center. While the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's Office ruled that the two men at Krome died of 'natural' causes, a Miami Herald investigation found evidence of what experts described as questionable medical care for the two immigrants. Wasserman Schultz said while she could not say that cruelty was taking place inside Krome or that immigrants' were being denied due process — she saw rooms where they could meet with lawyers — the conditions were nevertheless disturbing. That includes hearing from migrants how sometimes there are plans to move them away despite an upcoming hearing. She saw multiple small cells, she said, where between 25 and 35 men are held 'for upwards of 48 hours.' 'The consensus was that they are there in those rooms with all of those other men, eating, sleeping and going to the bathroom in that room … sleeping on the floor, having to urinate and defecate in front of other people in that in that small room,' the congresswoman said. Even when they shower there is no privacy, the men complained. 'The two constituents I spoke to definitely described conditions that were extremely unpleasant, not conditions that you would want anyone you care about to be subjected to,' she said. Wasserman Schultz arrived at the facility after 3 p.m. The staff was surprised by her unannounced visit, she said, but she was allowed in without incident after having to wait for about 20 minutes. There was some chatter about whether she could speak to detainees, but she pushed back and was able to talk to two detainees — a Cuban national and Jamaican national — who lived in her district. The reason she was able to show up unannounced is because of a 2020 law she helped write that prevents DHS from interfering in congressional oversight, she said. 'I can tell you that some of the things I saw would not have looked like that if I had given them notice,' she said. Still, as she walked the facility, she 'got inconsistent answers depending on who I was speaking to and asking the question to and from the leadership that was walking me through, to the personnel that I was talking to.' This was the case, she said, when she inquired about the two detainees' deaths. Wasserman Schultz said her concerns about the conditions of detainees in custody are fueled by a number of factors. One is the push by the Trump administration to allocate $45 billion in the federal budget to expand immigrant detention facilities and services. The 'big, ugly bill,' she said, was 'rammed through last week in the middle of the night by one vote,' and the administration is going to attempt to ramp up and process even more detainees. 'When they do that, you start to fill up even more facilities like Krome,' the congresswoman said. 'Then the conditions are going to get decidedly worse.' Wasserman Schultz, who represents the largest district of Venezuelan-American voters in the country, said another concern she has is the administration's track record on immigration. 'The administration is lying when they say that they're really only prioritizing criminals. I am getting calls from constituents who say, U.S. citizen children have been deported along with their undocumented parents,' she said. 'Trump has absolutely no regard for the law. He is the most anti-immigrant president in American history, and he is hell bent on essentially bleaching, bleaching out the United States.' Wasserman Schultz said she plans to aggressively engage DHS as a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee 'to ensure that we can make conditions better in these facilities and also fight back on their outrageous extreme immigration policy that are not targeting people who are criminals and who are here to do anything other than to make a better way of life for themselves and their families, and have credible fear from countries like Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba —places that are in no condition to send anyone back to right now.'
CBS News
28-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
South Florida residents face long wait times for Social Security help amid staffing cuts
South Florida residents trying to access Social Security services say they are encountering hours-long wait times and mounting frustration, as staffing shortages hit local offices hard. Pamela Burgio, who lives in the area and qualifies for Social Security benefits in June, said she has spent hours trying to get information from the Social Security Administration (SSA) without success. "I'm very confused about the process and trying to reach out to Social Security to get some answers," Burgio said. "Wait times on the phone can be three hours long. I've spent hours on the website, can't find what I need, and I can't reach anyone to make an appointment." Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a South Florida Democrat, said the growing backlog is partly due to job cuts initiated during the Trump administration, which planned to eliminate 7,000 SSA positions. The agency even offered voluntary buyouts to employees earlier this year, CBS News reported. Impact felt at Social Security Administration Plantation office Yanick Larose, a former SSA worker in Plantation, said she accepted one of the buyouts, fearing she would be forced out later. "I had the age and the years, so I just did it," Larose said. Wasserman Schultz said Larose is one of eight employees who have already left the Plantation office. She warned that Social Security was understaffed even before these departures, and it could take years to fully train new hires to fill the gaps. "You have to have a technological backbone that can sustain the number of calls that come in so there's a timely response," she said. Wasserman Schultz is pushing for legislation to block further staffing cuts, but said she would need support from at least three Republicans in the House to get it passed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
‘Deathly dangerous': Florida Democrats warn against job cuts at NOAA ahead of hurricane season
Video above: Ex-NOAA employee says layoffs could make forecasts less accurate TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Democrats representing Florida in Congress signed onto a letter urging the federal government to reconsider staffing cuts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service (NWS) ahead of hurricane season. This comes amid reports that hundreds of jobs were slated to be slashed at the agency, totaling up to 10% of its workforce. Report: NOAA cuts impact meteorologists in Florida who track hurricanes In the letter, addressed to Office of Management & Budget Director Russell Vought, the eight congressional Democrats warned of potential negative impacts of workforce reductions at NOAA as part of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative. 'These cuts, particularly those affecting meteorologists and weather forecasters, pose an immediate and severe threat to hurricane preparedness and response in Florida and across the nation,' the letter said. With less than three months to go until the official start of hurricane season, the lawmakers warned job cuts at NOAA would 'leave our state more vulnerable to extreme weather, potentially increasing the cost of disaster response and recovery while putting lives at greater risk.' Hurricane season is 100 days away: Here are the names Florida is still reeling from the devastation caused by three deadly storms in 2024. 'Slashing the workforces at NWS and NOAA cripples their ability to warn and protect the public, endangering millions of Americans—especially those in coastal and storm-prone regions like the Tampa Bay area,' Tampa Bay area Rep. Kathy Castor said in a statement. 'These cuts are not just irresponsible; they are deathly dangerous and will leave us vulnerable to hurricanes and other disasters.' The letter was signed by Rep. Castor, who represents Hillsborough and Pinellas counties; Rep. Darren Soto, who represents Orange, Osceola and Polk counties; Rep. Maxwell Frost, who represents Orange County; Rep. Lois Frankel, who represents Palm Beach County; Rep. Jared Moskowitz, who represents part of Palm Beach and Broward counties; Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who represents part of Palm Beach and Broward counties; Rep. Frederica Wilson, who represents part of Broward and Miami-Dade counties; and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who represents Broward County. Rep. Frankel called the situation 'a catastrophe waiting to happen.' Rep. Wasserman Schultz criticized Florida Republicans who did not join Democrats in signing the letter. National Hurricane Center changes 'Gulf of Mexico' to 'Gulf of America' 'I crafted this letter to protect NOAA and the NWS without partisan rhetoric, so my Republican colleagues could comfortably join forces with us,' Rep. Wasserman Schultz said in a statement. 'Sadly, they refused to unite around our residents' safety. I hope they speak privately with the President to head off this reckless effort. If they don't, I pray that none of them have reason to regret not speaking up.' When asked about the staffing cuts last week, a NOAA spokesperson told WFLA the agency does not discuss internal personnel and management matters 'as per longstanding practice.' The 2025 hurricane season begins on June 1. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Outrageous': Trump administration move to scale back protections for Venezuelans in US sparks concern in South Florida
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Trump administration's decision to roll back temporary protected status for Venezuelans living in the U.S. has sparked alarm in the nation's large expatriate community in South Florida. U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said Thursday her office has been fielding concerns from individual Venezuelans and community leaders — 'my neighbors and friends' — in the day since the Trump administration announced the move. Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat who represents south and west Broward County, lives in Weston, which has one of the largest Venezuelan populations in the United States — so big the city is sometimes referred to as Westonzuela. She said there is potential for great harm from the decision to cancel an extension of temporary protected status for Venezuelans that was granted in the last week of former President Joe Biden's administration. Temporary protected status, known widely by the acronym TPS, is a humanitarian program that allows people from a designated country to live and work in the U.S. Venezuelans have fled economic chaos and lawlessness under the repressive regimes of President Nicolas Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chavez. About 505,000 Venezuelans were covered by TPS in September, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service. On Wednesday, Trump homeland security secretary Kristi Noem revoked the Biden administration extension — making the announcement on the "Fox & Friends" television show, a favorite news source for Republicans. Restricting immigration was a central theme of Trump's 2024 campaign. 'It's outrageous that President Trump rescinded the extension of TPS that President Biden issued,' Wasserman Schultz said. 'The people who have fled the Maduro regime fled for their lives. Maduro uses oppression and funds from his oil sales to the United States and other countries to engage in terrorism. he aligns himself with the access of evil — Russia, China and Iran — and he is illegally in office,' she said. 'TPS is designed to make sure that people who would fear for their lives and their safety if they return to their country, that we can keep them safe here for a period of time,' Wasserman Schultz said. 'It is dangerous for anyone to be returned to Venezuela, and Trump canceling the TPS for Venezuelans who are here sends them to almost certain harm if he starts deporting them.' Wasserman Schultz also condemned Noem for the language she used during the "Fox & Friends" announcement, appearing to refer to Venezuelans in the U.S. as 'dirtbags.' 'In fact, the secretary of Homeland Security called those Venezuelans that are my neighbors and friends dirtbags — dirtbags. The disrespect and the vulgarity and the condescension with which Trump and his administration look at people who have fled countries where there's oppression to make a better way of life for themselves and keep their families safe is revolting,' Wasserman Schultz said. Noem said that the 'people of this country want these dirtbags out,' referring to 'the Venezuelans that are here and members of TDA.' TDA is a reference to the Tren de Aragua, a gang based in Venezuela. The Biden administration granted TPS to Venezuelans in 2021 and continued it in 2023. Just before leaving office, then homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas extended it until the end of 2026. 'Before he left town, Mayorkas signed an order that said for 18 months they were going to extend this protection to people that are in Temporary Protected Status, which meant they were going to be able to stay here and violate our laws for another 18 months,' Noem said said on "Fox & Friends." 'We stopped that.' The move means they'd be eligible for earlier deportation than under the Mayorkas order. Given the large Venezuelan population in South Florida, TPS has long enjoyed bipartisan support in the region. When Biden first granted TPS in 2021, Florida Republicans, who are often outspoken in opposition to repressive regimes such as Venezuela, were supportive. On Wednesday, after Noem announced and implemented the order rescinding the TPS extension, U.S. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Carlos Giménez and Maria Elvira Salazar, all Florida Republicans, issued a long, somewhat vague 'joint statement regarding Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelan nationals.' The statement itself did not comment specifically, positively or negatively, on the Trump administration's action on TPS, and didn't use the term or the acronym. 'The regime of Nicolás Maduro is one of the world's most repressive dictatorships, and its mounting failures have led to one of the largest migration crises in history, with millions of Venezuelans being forced to flee the brutal and oppressive regime. As a result, many Venezuelans have arrived in our country and have integrated into our communities, respecting our laws and contributing to the prosperity of our great country,' they said. But, they added, 'some individuals such as members of the Tren de Aragua have exploited our generosity and flouted our laws.' They said Trump 'has shown steadfast and unwavering solidarity with the Venezuelan people.' And they said they would 'do everything possible to ensure that those seeking freedom from persecution and oppression are protected.'
