Trump administration halts visas for same-sex partners of diplomats, UN employees

[left-of-center2012]

President Donald Trump's administration this week began denying visas to the unmarried, same-sex partners of foreign diplomats and officials and employees of the United Nations — making marriage a requirement to be eligible for a visa.

The shift was detailed in a memo circulated at the United Nations' headquarters in New York last month. It gives the same-sex partners of foreign diplomats and United Nations workers until the end of the year to get married or leave the country.

Critics of the move argue the new policy will create hardship for same-sex couples from countries that ban same-sex marriage or only offer civil unions. And for those who marry in the U.S. to secure their visa status, they could face criminal proceedings once they return to their home nations.

Samantha Power, a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations who served under former president Barack Obama described the policy in a tweet as "needlessly cruel and bigoted."

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/10/02/trump-halts-visas-same-sex-partners-diplomats-un-employees/1495218002/

[NurseJackie]

1. Truly evil. This serves no good purpose.

[SimpleC]

2. I smell Stephen Miller

Working in the background....

This is the kind of stuff he works diligently in the background for...

[treestar]

3. This sucks, but how did they get one before?

Might have been Obama era. Now that gay married people can get visas - this is no different from straight people. They can't get visas in this case either but have to be married. This may have been a kindness of Obama from before gay spouses could count as spouses. The thing about their having to get married bears this out. Even so, they could grandfather them, and it is only Stephen Miller and Orange Ass that would care enough to do a mean thing here.

[Scurrilous]

4. ...

[Vinca]

5. This is so nasty I thought it must be satire from the Onion.