Political Quotes

“today I and my colleague Senator Obama are introducing a private relief bill on behalf of Diana Gejac Engstrom. This bill would grant legal permanent residency status to Ms. Engstrom. The Engstrom story is one of service. Both the late Todd Engstrom and his widow, Diana, have spent their professional lives in service of human rights and American ideals. Todd served as a Commander in the United Nations Special Operations Group; Diana worked as a United Nations translator in Kosovo. After their marriage in 2003, Diana filed for legal permanent residency, with the ultimate goal of achieving American citizenship. After the commencement of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Todd joined EOD Technology, Inc. as a Security Manager for Iraq. The U.S. Army assigned Todd to Iraq as a contractor to support our rebuilding efforts. Before leaving for Iraq, Todd asked Diana to raise his son, Dalton, in the event of his death. Assigned to an area just outside of Fallujah, Todd helped train Iraqi security forces. On September 14, 2004, Todd died in a rocket-propelled grenade attack on his convoy by Iraqi insurgents. As it stands, in addition to the tragedy of losing her husband, Diana can no longer continue the process of applying for legal residency and is in danger of deportation. Diana and Todd were not married for 2 years and therefore our immigration laws will not allow her to apply for permanent residency as a widow.…”