6 Sentences & 350,000 Lives

Supreme Court lets DHS move forward with plan to strip Venezuelans of permission to live and work in United States

Citizens of Venezuela who currently have the federal government’s permission to live and work in the United States now face the possibility of losing that legal authorization after the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration this week. The justices temporarily allowed the Department of Homeland Security to end Temporary Protected Status for citizens of Venezuela, an unprecedented move that is likely to affect roughly 350,000 people in the coming months.

Photo by Colin Lloyd on Unsplash

In an unsigned, six-sentence order, the Supreme Court put aside a lower court order siding with the National TPS Alliance, a private organization that advocates on behalf of TPS recipients. In March, Judge Edward Chen concluded that the group could likely show that Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s decision to terminate TPS was illegal. Chen blocked DHS from implementing Noem’s directive while the parties appealed. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit kept the stay in place as the parties disputed Chen’s order.

This week’s decision from the Supreme Court lets DHS move forward with its plans to end humanitarian protections granted by the Biden administration. But carrying out its plans won’t be straightforward. Some citizens of Venezuela who stand to lose TPS have already filed asylum claims. Others are likely to do so in the coming weeks. Most people who lose TPS protection but have another legal claim to raise are entitled to an immigration court hearing. With more than 3.9 million cases already waiting decisions from immigration judges, any new cases added to the backlog are likely to linger for years.

Meanwhile, the legal challenge to Noem’s termination announcement returns to Judge Chen’s courtroom in San Francisco. Instead of the fast-track process that led to the judge’s earlier injunction, the parties will now turn to fully developing their positions. No presidential administration has ever terminated TPS. Judge Chen has already shown an inclination to believe that the Trump administration’s decision to veer so starkly from past practice under Republican and Democratic presidents is arbitrary and capricious, a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.

After the Supreme Court’s decision, Judge Chen scheduled a hearing in this case for May 29, suggesting his interest in developing the parties’ arguments fully so that he can reach a more thorough decision. Whichever party loses is certain to appeal. That will set the stage for another possible visit to the Supreme Court.

This week’s decision does not affect the administration’s plan to strip more than half a million Haitian citizens of TPS. At least two lawsuits are pending challenging that decision.