President Barack Obama: Iraq Special Immigrant Visa Program

Iraq Special Immigrant Visa Program: In a rare instance of bipartisanship, the Senate passed the measure by voice vote Thursday, just hours after the House had approved the bill the same way, according to Times Colonist. "Extending the Iraq Special Immigrant Visa Program will help those who helped us during a time of war," Sens. John McCain, a Republican, and Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat, said in a joint statement. "Brave Iraqis who risked their lives to protect and assist American troops are now living under the threat of retribution from terrorists and militants as a result. The United States has a moral obligation to help those Iraqis who stood with our troops." WASHINGTON - A measure to provide special visas for Iraqis who risked their lives to help the United States is heading to President Barack Obama. The special visa has allowed more than 12,000 Iraqi contractors, interpreters and others who aided U.S. efforts, and their family members, to move to the United States since 2007. It expired earlier this week, with an estimated 2,000 applications still in the bureaucratic process. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.