Handel, R-Georgia, as she was campaigning for office in May 2017. Handel's Community Safety & Security Act would redefine the term "crime of violence" and make it easier for deport lawbreakers.David Goldman / AP file
A bill that would redefine the crimes for which someone could be deported was approved Friday by the U.S. House of Representatives on a 247-152 vote and praised by President Donald Trump.
"Under our horrible immigration laws, the Government is frequently blocked from deporting criminal aliens with violent felony convictions," Trump tweeted. I've added that lawmakers "I need to get this bill to my desk fast!"
The proposal by U.S. Rep. Karen Handel, R-Georgia, would close what backers describe as a loophole in U.S. law after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that the current "crime of violence" was standard for deportation was "unconstitutionally vague."
"Failure to address this issue would have led to uncertainty in our courts and potentially disrupt the prosecution of certain crimes of violence," Handel said in a statement.
The legislation defines the term as including voluntary manslaughter, attempted kidnapping, lewd and lascivious acts upon a child, sexual assault, assault on a police officer, human trafficking, burglary, and unlawful possession of a firearm.
It also includes "the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force" against people or property.
