The Supreme Court delivered a significant win to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda on Friday, granting a request that paves the way for expedited deportation of 500,000 illegal immigrants currently protected under a temporary program.
In a 7-2 decision, the Court stayed a lower court order that had blocked the administration’s move to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for illegal immigrants from countries like Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.
The ruling clears the way for the administration to implement sweeping changes to TPS while related lawsuits continue.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the majority, warning of serious humanitarian consequences.
Jackson, writing for the dissent, criticized the decision as one that “plainly botched” its legal analysis and failed to account for the “devastating consequences” to nearly half a million noncitizens.
“While it is apparent that the Government seeks a stay to enable it to inflict maximum predecision damage, court-ordered stays exist to minimize—not maximize—harm to litigating parties,” she wrote, according to Axios.
The decision allows the Trump administration to move forward with its Jan. 20 executive order, which seeks to eliminate humanitarian parole programs and strip TPS from certain foreign nationals.
The Department of Homeland Security followed up with a directive last month, terminating parole grants, which effectively shortens legal stay periods and opens the door for expedited removal, Trending Politics reports.
The blocked TPS revocation originated with a ruling by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston.
Her decision prevented the administration from ending the protected status for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who claim their home countries are unsafe due to natural disasters or armed conflict.
Solicitor General John Sauer urged the high court earlier this month to allow the Trump administration’s policy to proceed.
He criticized Judge Talwani’s decision, saying it intruded on the Executive Branch’s discretion over sensitive foreign-policy decisions related to immigration.
“The district court’s reasoning is untenable,” Sauer argued, adding that TPS decisions require “particularly discretionary, sensitive, and foreign-policy-laden judgments,” Fox News reports.
His argument appears to have carried weight with the justices, as the stay effectively lifts the lower court’s barrier.
TPS allows individuals from nations experiencing extraordinary conditions to remain and work in the U.S. legally.
Critics of the program argue that it has been abused, turning a temporary relief mechanism into a de facto path to permanent residency for people from unstable regions.
With the stay in place, Trump’s policy to revoke TPS protections, particularly for Venezuelans, is now free to move ahead even as legal challenges continue in lower courts.
This is expected to lead to a rapid incr
The administration has said it will prioritize individuals who have exhausted other legal avenues to remain in the U.S.
The administration has cited national security and border enforcement goals as key drivers for its move to rescind TPS.
Officials say ending the program aligns with Trump’s broader strategy to deter illegal immigration and remove those without legal claim to remain in the country.
