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TO controversial immigration program that has been in place for decades has recently become a hot topic, as the incoming Trump administration appears likely to eliminate or severely limit it, and Democrats are calling on President Biden to take steps to preserve it.
Temporary Protected Status is a program established in the 1990s that allows the government to designate unsafe countries for the return of its nationals, granting nationals already in the US work permits and protection from deportation if are here illegally or if their legal status expires.
The Biden administration designated or redesignated several countries for TPS, including Venezuela, Haiti, Afghanistan and others, allowing hundreds of thousands of citizens to remain in the United States. There are currently 17 countries designated for TPS.
Migrants board a city bus toward a shelter intake center after traveling by bus from Del Rio, Texas, to the Port Authority bus terminal in New York City on May 13, 2023. (Victor J. Azul)
The first Trump administration attempted to eliminate TPS for several countries but became caught in a years-long court battle brought by left-wing civil rights groups over the issue.
TPS became a major issue again in 2024, as Republicans and conservatives drew attention to mass migration through humanitarian permit from Haiti. The immigrants arrived through the use of the CBP One application and a program that allowed up to 30,000 immigrants from four countries a month to enter the United States. They could then be eligible for TPS if they arrived before the country was redesignated.
There were widespread reports of Haitian immigrants flooding into cities in Ohio and elsewhere, which were picked up by former President Trump and his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio. Trump promised to revoke TPS for Haiti earlier this year.
“It’s been invaded. You can’t do that to people. I would repeal (TPS) and bring (immigrants) back to their country,” he said. NewsNation when talking about Springfield, Ohio.
Vance described TPS as a “government edict that says people are no longer allowed to be deported.” Conservatives have long complained that continued extensions of TPS mean it is not “temporary” as it claims to be.
President-elect Trump (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images/File)
Republicans have moved to restrict the program in Congress. Sen.-elect Jim Banks, R-Indiana.introduced a bill that restricts TPS designations by requiring Congress to approve them for 12-month periods and requiring additional action by Congress to extend them. Trump has promised to launch a massive deportation operation, and that is expected to be accompanied by restrictions on TPS and other immigration benefits.
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Given that, Democrats have been urging Biden to extend protections under TPS and other programs to mitigate the impact of the incoming administration.
“We write now because the window to secure and finalize your administration’s policies is rapidly closing,” said Democrats led by Senator Dick Durbin, Democrat of Illinois.Biden said in a letter this month.
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“We urge you to act decisively between now and the president-elect’s inauguration to complete the important work of the past four years and protect immigrant families.”
So far, however, there has been no movement on TPS from the Biden administration or any indication that any redesignation or extension is imminent.
