"Since President Trump first announced his Muslim ban more than two years ago, thousands of American families apart," US Senator Chris Coons said at a news conference, flanked by fellow Democrats and representatives of hundreds of advocacy groups to announce the initiative.
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The legislation would repeal a ban on visas for travellers from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen — nations with a history of Islamist terrorism — as well as North Korea and Venezuela, according to a press release.
More than 30 Senate Democrats and over 60 Democratic members in the House of Representatives signed on as cosponsors of the legislation.
The press release also mentioned that more than 400 advocacy groups backed the initiative, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Muslim Advocates and the National Immigration Law Center.
