"President Trump is restoring America's immigration system." That is how Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin responded to Friday's Supreme Court ruling allowing the Trump administration to end the temporary protected status (TPS) for about 300,000 Venezuelans who crossed U.S. borders, unvetted by proper immigration procedures.
The procedural move granting protection was set up by the previous administration of Democrat President Joe Biden. Then the coverage period was extended just before President Donald Trump's January 2025 inauguration.
The Trump administration believes that it was an improper and politically motivated workaround to the nation's immigration process. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem blocked the Biden-era allowance, a move quickly challenged in the courts.
Friday's 6-3 decision from what is mostly considered to be a conservative-leaning court blocked a decision by California U.S. District Judge Edward Chen, who halted the administration's rescission.
DHS labeled Chen an "activist" judge, noting this is the second reversal of a related decision from Chen by the high court. McLaughlin suggested that Americans should be concerned about overreach from federal judges. "The American people should not have had to go to the Supreme Court twice to see justice done," she said.
She said the Biden administration's application of the process was purposely manipulated. "Temporary Protected Status was always supposed to be just that: Temporary," McLaughlin said. "Yet, previous administrations abused, exploited, and mangled TPS into a de facto amnesty program."
Federal judges, she said, need to accept the message, "Now, that it's clear the law and the American people are on our side, Secretary Noem will continue to use every tool at our disposal to prioritize the safety of all U.S. citizens," McLaughlin said.
Reporting through mid-September points to a long string of Supreme Court decisions siding with the Trump administration, with orders and opinions based on emergency court filings.
Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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