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SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem exceeded her authority when she stripped more than a million Venezuelan and Haitian nationals living in the U.S. of their temporary protected status or TPS, a federal judge has said.
Senior U.S. District Judge Edward Chen, a Barack Obama appointee, on Friday granted a motion for summary judgment from the National TPS Alliance, an immigrant advocacy group.
Noem’s decision, Chen said, would have returned migrants to “conditions that are so dangerous that even the State Department advises against travel.” He called Noem’s actions unprecedented and illegal.
Jessica Bansal, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said the decision affirms the administration’s actions are illegal.
“Since taking office, the Trump administration has been systematically de-documenting lawful immigrants, spreading fear and chaos by stripping people of their immigration status and work authorization in unprecedented ways and on little to no notice,” she said.
Cecilia Gonzalez, a Venezuelan TPS holder from Florida, noted the effects of the administration’s efforts to block TPS.
“Members of our community have lost jobs, been detained and deported, and been separated from their families. I am relieved that this ruling will restore TPS protections, and hope that those protections remain in place under this righteous order. This is a clear example that, at the end of the day, justice always prevails,” she said.
A DHS spokesperson said Noem will use “every legal option at the department’s disposal” to end what they called “chaos” over the TPS program.
“For decades, the TPS program has been abused, exploited, and politicized as a de facto amnesty program," the spokesperson said. “Its use has been all the more dangerous given the millions of unvetted illegal aliens the Biden administration let into this country.”
Created by the 1990 Immigration Act, temporary protected status is offered to people from certain countries where violence or economic duress would make their deportation difficult or unsafe.
About 600,000 Venezuelans were given TPS under the Biden administration, making them the largest TPS demographic in the country.
Before leaving office, former President Joe Biden issued an extension for those whose status was running out. Noem revoked the extension as soon as she took office.
In February, Noem also revoked status for Haitian immigrants. There are about 500,000 Haitians in the United States who benefit from TPS.
In their lawsuit, migrants and the National TPS Alliance claimed Noem’s actions were motivated by racial animus and violated the Administrative Procedure Act.
In March, Chen postponed Noem’s decision after determining that racial animus was indeed a likely factor. There’s never been such a revocation in the 35-year history of the TPS program. Then, in a one-page decision without explanation in May, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed Chen’s ruling.
In oral arguments on Aug. 1, the National TPS Alliance argued that in her haste to undo protections granted by the Biden administration, Noem sidestepped review requirements. The group argues she then fabricated reasons to justify her decision.
“It’s not a blank slate for her to decide whatever she wants,” Bansal said. “This is a statute that is designed to provide some measure of insulation against political changes to humanitarian refugees in this country.”
William Weiland, a Justice Department lawyer, said Noem considered the conditions in Venezuela as part of her decision.
“What they are asking you to do is weigh or reweigh" that decision, Weiland told the judge.
On Aug. 25, Chen issued a temporary stay pending a ruling by the Ninth Circuit.
Four days later, the Ninth Circuit affirmed Chen’s postponement order. A panel said Noem lacked authority to end the Biden-era extension of TPS for Venezuelans.
“The TPS statute is designed to constrain the executive, creating predictable periods of safety and legal status for TPS beneficiaries," U.S. Circuit Judge Kim Wardlaw, a Bill Clinton appointee, wrote for the panel.
In a separate lawsuit, the National TPS Alliance is also challenging the Trump administration’s revocation of protections for immigrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua.
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