The Trump administration has made a formal request asking the Supreme Court to step in regarding immigration policies. This move aims to overturn protections that have been in place since Biden’s presidency for many immigrants living in the U.S.
On Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General D. John Sauer requested that the Supreme Court intervene to reverse a lower court decision that halted the administration’s efforts to eliminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for around 350,000 Haitian immigrants currently residing in the country.
A majority of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit previously blocked the administration’s intention, pointing out the “significant” and “well-documented harm” these immigrants would likely face if protections were revoked. This has prompted the administration to appeal to the Supreme Court.
In his filing, Sauer requested the Supreme Court to address whether the Trump administration has the authority to revoke TPS for other groups of immigrants in a broader context. He emphasized the need for the court to resolve these ongoing issues to prevent repeated conflicting decisions in the future. “This court needs to break that cycle,” he added.
The TPS program allows individuals from designated countries to live and work in the U.S. if extraordinary circumstances such as natural disasters or violence hinder their ability to do so safely in their home countries.
Haitians were initially granted TPS after the disastrous 2010 earthquake that killed over 200,000 people and left many homeless. The status has been renewed several times, including during Biden’s administration after the assassination of Haiti’s last democratically elected president, Juvenel Moïse, in July 2021.
Last November, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced the intention to end TPS protections for Haitians, after which affected individuals filed a lawsuit challenging the decision.
This marks a second attempt this year by the Trump administration to have the Supreme Court allow the removal of TPS for certain immigrant groups. Last month, lawyers representing the Justice Department also petitioned for the revocation of TPS for Syrian immigrants, although the high court has not yet ruled on that request.
The recent appeal came shortly after U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes blocked the Department of Homeland Security from swiftly revoking TPS for Haitians. Reyes labeled the administration’s actions as “arbitrary and capricious,” noting a lack of consideration for the ongoing dangers in Haiti that had initially warranted the protections.
She concluded that the government failed to demonstrate any substantial harm from continuing the current status. Instead, it argued that the court’s decision interfered unnecessarily with the federal government’s operations.
This appeal is part of a larger agenda from the Trump administration to scale back TPS designations, claiming the programs have been extended excessively under Democratic leadership.
Officials from the Trump administration have accused lower courts of overstepping their authority in blocking efforts to roll back TPS protections, asserting that such actions illegally undermine the executive branch’s control over immigration policy.
