U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration

10/01/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/01/2026 13:38

Klobuchar Recognizes Crystal and Justin Kasmiskie as this Year's Angels in Adoption Minnesota Honorees

The Kasmiskie family and Senator Amy Klobuchar at the Angels in Adoption annual celebration in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Coalition on Adoption, spoke at the annual Angels in Adoption celebration hosted by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute and recognized Crystal and Justin Kasmiskie from Shakopee, Minnesota, as this year's Angels in Adoption Minnesota honorees, alongside their adopted sons.

The Kasmiskies adopted their two-year-old twins in December of 2025 but trouble with their visas delayed their travel. The Kasmiskies were faced with a horrible choice: leave one of their twins behind or stay and risk losing both before the visa ban went into effect. They chose to stay with the kids. Ultimately, with Klobuchar's help, the family received their approved visas and safely departed Liberia.

"Every child deserves a loving home, a nurturing family, and a bright future," said Klobuchar. "When Crystal and Justin first encountered a technical visa error, they worried they wouldn't be able to bring their sons home before a visa ban was set to take effect. Our office was able to push their visas through and on January 20th, one day before the ban affected visas from Liberia, they departed for home. Since then, their boys have started preschool, spent lots of time with family, and even went apple picking!"

In her role as co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Coalition on Adoption, Klobuchar has been a leader in the fight to give every child a permanent home. The Congressional Coalition on Adoption is the largest bipartisan, bicameral caucus in Congress. To date, Klobuchar's office has assisted more than 1,500 Minnesota families with their adoption cases.

In response to the visa ban in January, Klobuchar has advocated for adoption visas to be exempted from the travel ban, as well as guidance for families on how to move forward.

In January 2026, Klobuchar led a letter with her Adoption Caucus Co-Chairs, Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL), and Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), to the State Department requesting immediate guidance and permanent exemptions for adoption visas.

###

U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration published this content on October 01, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 01, 2026 at 19:38 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]