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A controversial immigration program which has been in place for decades, has recently become a hot-button issue as it looks set to be eliminated or severely limited by the incoming Trump administration, and Democrats are calling on President Biden to take steps to preserve the the
Temporary Protected Status is a program established in the 1990s that allows the government to designate countries to which nationals may be unsafe to return, granting nationals already in the US work permits and protection from deportation if they are here illegally or if your legal status expires.
The Biden administration designated or redesignated several countries for TPS, including Venezuela, Haiti, Afghanistan and others, allowing hundreds of thousands of nationals to remain in the US as a result. There are currently 17 countries designated for TPS.
Migrants board a city bus to a shelter intake center after traveling on a bus from Del Rio, Texas to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City on May 13, 2023. (Victor J. Blue)
The first Trump administration tried to end TPS for several countries, but was caught up in a years-long court battle launched 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 parole from Haiti. Migrants entered through the use of the CBP One application and a program that allowed up to 30,000 migrants from four countries into the US per month. They could then be eligible for TPS if they arrived before the country was re-designated.
There were widespread reports of Haitian migrants flooding into cities in Ohio and elsewhere, which were picked up by former President Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio. Trump promised to revoke TPS for Haiti earlier this year.
“It has been invaded. You can’t do this to people. I would revoke (TPS) and take (migrants) back to their country,” he said. NewsNation when talking about Springfield, Ohio.
Vance described TPS as a “government edict that says you’re no longer allowed to deport people.” Conservatives have long complained that continued TPS extensions mean it’s not as “temporary” as it says it is.
President-elect Trump (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images/File)
Republicans have made moves to restrict the program in Congress. Sen.-elect Jim Banks, R-Ind.introduced a bill that restricts TPS designations by requiring Congress to approve them for 12-month terms and requiring additional congressional action to extend them. Trump has vowed to launch a massive deportation crackdown, and restrictions on TPS and other immigration benefits are expected to go along with it.
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With that, Democrats have urged Biden to expand protections under TPS and other programs to lessen the impact of the incoming administration.
“We are writing now because the window to secure and finalize your administration’s policies is rapidly closing,” Democrats led by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.he told Biden 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 by the Biden administration and no indication that any redesignation or expansion is imminent.
