Temporary Protective Status, also known as TPS, is ending the United States at least for some. It will be for more if we can get the liberal courts out of the way. That will be a challenge for US Attorney General Pam Bondi.
TPS was supposed to be just that — temporary with no path to US citizenship. It was to provide a way for the United States to host people from other countries for a time when conditions in home countries were threatening. The problem is that, particularly during the Biden administration, TPS turned into PPS, permanent protective status. Renewals of extensions came to be automatic with no end.
Under the current President Trump administration, TPS has returned to what it was intended for in the first place. Many of those who are in the United States under TPS are on their way back to their home countries. The Trump administration, for example, is ending TPS for 350,000 from Venezuela which is about half of the total Venezuelans numbering about 600,000. The remainder face ending TPS with return to Venezuela later this year.
Reportedly, about 1 million people from 17 countries currently reside in the United States under TPS. These include people from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan. Trump tried to end TPS for these people in his first term but was thwarted by immigration advocacy groups through court action. Times are different now. More returns home are on the horizon.
All of this is just a part of moving out of the United States of America people who are either in the country illegally or have temporary status. It is a move to establish residence only for American citizens or people who have arrived via lawful pathways. It is for people who have followed the long path to citizenship, are temporary foreign students, or have some other legal authority under immigration law.
President Trump promised removal of illegal aliens in addition to ending TPS. There are millions to be sent back to home countries. The herculean effort has begun.