Vote to Provide Legal Due Process to Non-Citizen US Military Veterans Fails

Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., addresses a witness appearing before the Committee on House Administration during a hearing about noncitizen voting in U.S. elections on Capitol Hill, Thursday, May 16, 2024 in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell) Military.com | By Nick Mordowanec Published April 21, 2026 at 5:35pm ET A California lawmaker's proposed amendment to provide legal protections for non-citizen U.S. military veterans in deportation removal proceedings failed Tuesday in the House of Representatives.

Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) introduced the amendment to the Fiscal Year 2027 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies appropriations bill that according to an April 16 subcommittee markup would provide a total discretionary allocation of $157 billion, almost $4 billion (3%) above the FY 2026 enacted level.

After Torres introduced the amendment on Tuesday that would have prohibited federal funds from being used to deport a veteran unless they are first provided legal counsel and due process in immigration court, House Republicans introduced a change replacing these legal protections that Torres said merely reaffirms current law—claiming they "admit the reality that there is a serious problem with this administration deporting veterans, but fails to address the serious gaps that continue to leave veterans vulnerable to deportation without adequate protections."

The Republicans' effort to replace Torres' amendment language passed by a 34-28 vote, changing the language of the underlying amendment she initially introduced. It was then adopted by voice vote.

“I don't think that anybody should be processed through what Republicans are calling a criminal action of being in this country without proper documents, without being represented by an attorney,” Torres told Military.com on Monday, ahead of the vote."

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Source: Military.com
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