A federal appeals court has blocked President Trump from ending a "temporary" legal status granted to Afghan refugees by his predecessor, Joe Biden.
The refugees have Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which provides relief from deportation and work permits. The Trump administration has emphasized the "temporary" nature of the status, but federal courts have repeatedly challenged his authority to suspend the program.
"Once again, a rogue judge is trying to infringe on the separation of powers and impede the Trump administration's rightful ability to carry out its immigration policy. Temporary Protective Status is meant to be 'temporary' in nature. We look forward to ultimate victory on the issue," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement.
Thousands of Afghans entered the U.S. as part of Biden's chaotic evacuation from Kabul in 2021. The poor vetting involved in the Biden administration's rushed process for admitting Afghan refugees has raised security concerns.
A 27-year-old Afghan national who entered the U.S. in September 2021 on a special immigrant visa - a status given to Afghans who supported the U.S. military - pled guilty last month to plotting an Election Day terrorist attack. The TPS program is separate from the special immigrant visa.
CASA, an immigrant advocacy group, sued to block Trump's May order that suspends TPS for thousands of Afghans. TPS was greatly expanded under President Biden, who used it as a de facto amnesty program.
The Biden administration renewed TPS protections for Afghans in 2023, citing "deepening humanitarian crisis" and "economic collapse" under Taliban rule.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said that Afghanistan has gotten safer, so there is nothing preventing Afghans from returning to their homeland.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit froze Trump's move for one week and gave Trump and CASA one week to file arguments.
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the appellate court's ruling "ignores the President's clear authorities under both Article II of the Constitution and the plain language of federal law."
"Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was never intended to be a de facto asylum program, yet it has been abused as one for decades," McLaughlin said. "The Trump administration is restoring integrity to our immigration system to keep our homeland and its people safe, and we have the law, the facts, and common sense on our side."
The ruling sets up an absurd scenario: the current U.S. president is being forced to keep immigrants in the country who are only allowed to stay under a "temporary" status that was abused by Trump's predecessor. It's also worth noting that those immigrants only came here in the first place because of a crisis in Afghanistan that Biden and his team caused.
In May, the Supreme Court allowed Trump to end TPS protections for 350,000 Venezuelans.
