A federal judge on Monday lifted an order preventing the Trump administration from stripping temporary protected status for thousands of Afghans and Cameroonians in the United States.
Let’s examine the details. The administration had moved in April to terminate TPS for an estimated 14,600 Afghans and 7,900 Cameroonians residing in the United States. Officials claim their home countries as the basis for this decision.
TPS allows individuals from designated countries to live and work in the U.S. legally due to conditions in their homeland that prevent safe return. The program’s termination would affect the legal status of these individuals.
An immigrant advocacy group called CASA filed a lawsuit challenging the decision. While a lower court initially granted a stay, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit has now ruled that there is “insufficient evidence to warrant the extraordinary remedy” of continuing to block the administration’s action.
It’s important to note that the court did find CASA’s claim of a potentially “preordained” decision to end TPS to be plausible. However, this was not enough to maintain the stay at this stage of the legal process.
As of this report, the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the TPS program, has not stated the court’s decision. The full implications of this ruling and any potential further legal challenges remain to be seen.
