In the News
La Ley de Sueños y Promesas es necesaria para prevenir una mayor inestabilidad en Centroamérica
La semana pasada, la Cámara de Representantes aprobó la Ley de Sueños y Promesas. Este proyecto de ley histórico brindará alivio y un camino a la ciudadanía a más de un millón de personas que ya han construido sus vidas en los Estados Unidos. Cuando voté a favor de este proyecto de ley, pensé en los muchos jóvenes de mi distrito que han beneficiado por la Acción Diferida para los Llegados en la Infancia, o DACA, cuyas vidas se han mantenido en un compás de espera por la decisión de la … Continue Reading
May 28, 2019
Impeachment is about more than the Mueller report
To some Democrats, impeaching President Trump is not just about whether findings of the Mueller reportshow that he broke the law. It's an umbrella punishment for all the ways he's deviated from the presidential norm.Here are some common arguments that the 39-and-counting House Democrats who support the start of impeachment proceedings are making for why Trump should be impeached, in addition to the Mueller report.He's obstructing Congress's probes: If the Mueller report outlining 10 areas of … Continue Reading
May 24, 2019
Rep. Norma Torres, only House member from Central America, wants to fix border crisis with aid, not punishment
Rep. Norma Torres looks at the Central American migrants flocking to the Mexican border in hopes of gaining asylum in the United States and sees her own reflection.When she was 5, Torres' parents sent her from their home, in war-torn Guatemala, to live with an uncle in Whittier. She remembers the city as less diverse than it is today, and being "pretty much the only Latino family on our street."She also says she understands how big a move it was to send her north."I can't imagine what a mother … Continue Reading
May 23, 2019
La ley en EE. UU. que busca proteger a madres migrantes centroamericanas y a sus hijos
Esas dos congresistas, la demócrata Norma Torres y la republicana Ann Wagner,propusieron la semana pasada una iniciativa legal, que acabó siendo consolidada en otra ley que finalmente fue aprobada este miércoles en el Comité de Exteriores, por lo que ahora será debatida en el pleno de la Cámara de Representantes, de mayoría demócrata.El objetivo de Torres y Wagner era proteger a las mujeres y niños del Triángulo Norte de la violencia de género, la violencia sexual y de abusos, así como hacer … Continue Reading
May 15, 2019
US bill calls for DOJ review of Indian Country probes
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — U.S. House members re-introduced legislation Tuesday that calls for the Justice Department to review how law enforcement agencies respond to cases of missing and slain Native Americans as the nationwide push to bring more attention to the issue gains momentum.The legislation is named for 22-year-old Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, who went missing while pregnant in 2017 before her body was found in a North Dakota river. Her baby, who Fargo police said had been cut from … Continue Reading
May 10, 2019
New Push to Recognize 911 Dispatchers for Their Life-Saving Role
They're the voice of calm in an emergency. 911 dispatchers deal with life and death every day, but they do it for low pay, long hours and little recognition. Now there's a national push to change that by bumping 911 jobs into a new classification that better reflects their life-saving role.When a phone rings inside the Fort Worth 911 call center, someone is having their worst day, and a voice at the other end of the line may be all that holds them together."My job is to keep them calm, … Continue Reading
April 24, 2019
How the Mueller report convinced this House Democrat that Trump should be impeached
Rep. Norma J. Torres (D-Calif.) was not for impeaching President Trump — until she read the Mueller report. The moderate Democrat says special counsel Robert S. Mueller III convinced her that House Democrats should begin impeachment proceedings right away against Trump, regardless of any political consequences to their party.As Democrats debate what to do, it will be voices like Torres's that will ultimately shape their decision. She spoke by phone to The Fix on Tuesday. Our conversation has … Continue Reading
April 17, 2019
Don’t Ease Gun Export Rules
President Donald Trump, who has received unprecedented support from America's gun lobby, seems determined to make it easier to export firearms and harder to keep track of whether they're destined for terrorists or rogue regimes. He proposes to do this by shifting oversight of the export of semi-automatic and non-automatic firearms, as well as of various gun components and some types of ammunition, from the Department of State to the Department of Commerce. The change threatens to undermine … Continue Reading
April 10, 2019
U.S. Needs To Focus On Root Cause Of Migration Crisis, Rep. Torres Says
David Greene talks to Democratic Rep. Norma Torres of California about Trump's toughening immigration policies, and the effects on Central American asylum-seekers. NPR's Mara Liasson weighs in.DAVID GREENE, HOST:The numbers are the highest they have been in years. U.S. Customs and Border Protection say more than 103,000 people tried to cross the southern border into the United States last month. The sheer volume of migrants is overwhelming the U.S. government on the southern border, and amid … Continue Reading
April 08, 2019
Only member of Congress born in Central America says U.S. shares blame for instability
Washington — Citing an unprecedented flow of migrant families heading towards the southern border, President Trump announced last week his administration would be cutting all foreign aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Although the president believes it will force the region's governments to curb migration, the sole member of Congress born in Central America predicts the move will not only lead to more migration, but also ignore America's "moral" responsibility to the … Continue Reading
April 04, 2019
Trump's move to cut aid to Central America will spur more migration, aid workers warn
Washington — Since taking office, President Trump has faulted Central American governments for not doing enough to stop migrant families from heading north, and he has repeatedly threatened to cut U.S. assistance to the region — a longstanding multi-million-dollar pillar of American foreign policy. Over the weekend, the president made good on his threat, directing his administration to halt all foreign aid to El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, collectively known as the "Northern Triangle" … Continue Reading
April 03, 2019
“Es una farsa”: Norma Torres critica lista de corruptos que entregó la administración de Donald Trump
"Esta lista es una farsa. Es increíble que los departamentos de Estado, de Defensa y de Justicia se hayan retrasado 53 días para entregar este informe, y esto es lo que nos dieron", dijo Torres. La congresista denunció que el gobierno de EE. UU. tiene conocimiento de muchas otras personas que forman parte del grupo de corruptos de Centroamérica que no fueron incluidos en la lista."Al ocultar intencionalmente los funcionarios corruptos en Centroamérica así desafiando la intención del Congreso, … Continue Reading
April 01, 2019
Donald Trump Puts U.S. National Security at Risk with Threats to Cut Off Central America Aid, Democrat Says
Democratic lawmakers slammed President Donald Trump's threat to cut aid to the Central American countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua, noting that the move could hurt U.S. national security."If carried out, President Trump's irresponsible decision to cut off our assistance to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras would undermine American interests and put our national security at risk. U.S. foreign assistance is not charity; it advances our strategic interests and funds initiatives … Continue Reading
March 27, 2019
White House slow-walking aid to Central America
Hundreds of millions of dollars in aid that Congress approved for El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras is stalled at the White House budget office, an impasse that threatens ongoing efforts to stem the influx of asylum seekers from the region.The holdup: Administration officials aren't sure whether President Donald Trump wants to withhold the funds for these countries to punish them for the northward flow of migrants.The money — a significant portion of roughly $627 million that Congress … Continue Reading
March 27, 2019
House approves bill to close gender pay gap
The House on Wednesday cleared a bill aimed at closing the gender pay gap, marking its first vote on the issue in nearly a decade and notching another political win for the Democratic Party.All 242 Democrats voted for the measure to tackle gender-based wage discrimination, which Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her top lieutenants had declared a top priority, with a record 102 women serving in their caucus.Seven Republicans backed the measure, including its sole Republican co-sponsor, Rep. … Continue Reading
March 15, 2019
Union Pacific vows to secure abandoned railcars in Pomona
Union Pacific Railroad has committed to cleaning out or locking over a dozen railcars parked on tracks in Pomona in the next week, according to a local politician.Since at least November, the abandoned railcars have been stored on a portion of unused tracks owned by Union Pacific near Temple Avenue and Valley Boulevard.U.S. Rep. Norma Torres, D-Pomona, said Friday she raised the need to increase public safety with representatives of the nation's railways at a hearing of the House … Continue Reading
March 14, 2019
House Democrats Hit Out at 'Cruel' Trump Plan to Increase Immigration Fees for 'Hard-Working, Law-Abiding Immigrants'
House Democrats have hit out at a Trump administration proposal to introduce a 10 percent surcharge for immigration petition filing fees to aid in deficit reduction, condemning the bid as a "cruel" plan that will hurt "hard-working, law-abiding immigrants."In a statement released on Wednesday, members of the Congressional New Americans Caucus, which is made up of first-generation immigrants, including Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Norma J. Torres (D-CA), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Salud Carbajal (D-CA), … Continue Reading
February 26, 2019
House Advances Resolution to Void Trump’s Emergency Declaration
THE HOUSE MOVED TUESDAY to undo President Donald Trump's emergency declaration to pay for a border wall with money Congress has not approved, setting up a battle over how much authority a president has and how much members of Trump's own party are prepared to defy him.In a strictly party-line 229-193 vote, the House approved the "rule" for a resolution disapproving of Trump's Feb. 15 declaration. The rule, which sets terms of debate for legislation, is generally an indicator of how the final … Continue Reading
February 26, 2019
Democrats and Republicans Debate the Legitimacy of Trump’s Border Crisis
On Tuesday, Congress began considering a resolution that would end the national emergency that President Trump has declared at the southern border in order to secure the funds to construct a border wall, which Congress has repeatedly denied him. The resolution is certain to pass the Democrat-controlled House, likely to pass the Senate, and all but certain to fail a veto-override vote once Trump inevitably rejects it.Debate began around noon, with a speech by Representative Norma Torres, of … Continue Reading
February 14, 2019
Furloughed Workers Help Others, Brace for New Shutdown
Not everyone is in a position to hand out mini-loans without interest, and most wouldn't if they could. But Joe Rodgers gives what he can for family and friends to survive the past, and possibly the future government shutdown. Over the past two months, he has come out of pocket with quite a few interest-free no fee small loans to help sustain fellow furloughed workers as their mortgage and other big bills come due. Impending worries of the potential Friday federal shutdown have many … Continue Reading