The United States Supreme Court has granted former President Donald Trump’s administration permission to revoke the temporary legal status of more than 500,000 migrants living in the country.
The ruling puts on hold an earlier federal court order that blocked the administration from ending the CHNV humanitarian parole programme, established under President Joe Biden.
The programme had allowed 532,000 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to live and work in the U.S. for two years, citing “urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit”, as many were fleeing economic collapse and political turmoil in their home countries.
Reacting to the ruling, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told reporters on Friday, “The White House celebrates the opportunity to deport 500,000 invaders. The Supreme Court justly stepped in.”
The Trump administration had earlier filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court after a federal judge in Massachusetts blocked the move to terminate the parole initiative.
On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Homeland Security to dismantle parole programmes.
In Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem formally announced the termination of the CHNV humanitarian parole.
Several immigrant rights groups, along with migrants enrolled in the programme, had sued the administration over the decision, arguing they could face serious threats, persecution, or even death if returned to their home countries.
This latest ruling follows another Supreme Court decision earlier this month that allowed Trump officials to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a separate programme, for approximately 350,000 Venezuelans living and working in the U.S.
