WASHINGTON — Jose Cabrera, a landscaper from Montgomery County, Maryland, joined three Latino Democratic senators at a Wednesday press conference. He urged the Biden administration to renew protected immigration statuses before President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Cabrera, who has lived in the U.S. for over 30 years, holds Temporary Protected Status (TPS), shielding him from deportation and granting him work permits. His home country, El Salvador, is deemed too dangerous for return. He and other legally residing immigrants fear being swept up in mass deportations should they lose their protected status under a Trump administration.
Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (Nevada), Alex Padilla (California), and Ben Ray Luján (New Mexico) are pressing the Biden administration to redesignate TPS for Nicaraguan and Salvadoran nationals and to grant TPS to Ecuadorians. TPS for El Salvador expires in March, and for Nicaragua in July—after Trump’s January 20th inauguration. “We know the incoming administration is going to try to implement chaotic immigration policies that tear our families apart,” Cortez Masto stated. The senators, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, also emphasized the need for expedited DACA renewal applications. Cortez Masto urged the administration to “ensure that we can renew their DACA status now, before they come under threat from the Trump administration.” The White House was unavailable for immediate comment.
The senators highlighted the urgency of action given Trump’s pledge for mass deportations targeting millions of undocumented immigrants. Those with TPS could be easily included if their status isn’t renewed. TPS designations, lasting six, twelve, or eighteen months before renewal, currently cover over one million immigrants but do not offer a pathway to citizenship. Seventeen countries currently have TPS designations, utilized in situations like the Ukrainian refugee crisis.
Andrea Flores, vice president of immigration policy and campaigns at FWD.us, echoed the senators’ concerns. She argued that Biden should utilize TPS to protect those currently holding the status. She noted that during Trump’s first term, attempts to end TPS for Haiti, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Sudan were blocked by the courts in 2018. “Those people will now lose legal status in the next administration. Those people will be subject to mass deportations, and they’ll be returned to a country where they will be guaranteed to be persecuted,” Flores stated.
Padilla and Luján warned that mass deportations would harm both communities and the U.S. economy. A Tuesday Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the ramifications of mass deportations revealed Republican plans for swift action upon Trump’s return to office. Luján stated that mass deportations “will jeopardize the safety and security of millions of mixed-status families, sowing deep (mis)trust and fear in the communities we represent, and without a doubt, destabilize the United States economy.” Approximately four million mixed-status families exist in the U.S.
Padilla emphasized the crucial roles played by TPS and DACA recipients in U.S. industries. “By taking work authorization for hundreds of thousands of workers away, we’re gutting our own workforce,” he said. While Trump stated in a recent NBC interview that he would “work with the Democrats on a plan” to keep DACA recipients in the U.S., he provided no specifics. The DACA program awaits a federal court decision on its legal future.
Thomas A. Saenz, president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, advised Dreamers to continue applying for renewals without fear. Cortez Masto, while expressing willingness to work to protect Dreamers, remained skeptical of Trump’s promises, referencing a 2018 bipartisan bill he rejected.
Juliana Macedo do Nascimento, deputy director of federal advocacy at United We Dream, expressed concern over ICE access to DACA applicant information through USCIS. She urged the Biden administration to create a firewall between USCIS databases and DHS agencies like ICE and CBP, stating, “The government has all of our information. They could potentially come get us at any point. That’s the worst case scenario.”