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Hard to think of a more unprincipled decision than the one made tonight by the Trump administration and @DHSgov to end TPS for Haitians. /1 http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article185716193.html
The law requires DHS to consider whether conditions justifying a grant of TPS persist in the country. For Haiti, DHS decided JUST SIX MONTHS AGO that conditions warranted an extension of TPS. /2
Since that decision, Haiti was hit by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, exacerbating the existing food and housing insecurity crises on the island and further jeopardizing access to clean water. /3
The press release by Acting Secretary Duke makes no mention whatsoever of Hurricane Matthew, much less the recent hurricanes. http://bit.ly/2z4OZ74 /4
That's important, because it suggests the Department is adopting a new and extremely narrow interpretation of the TPS statute that largely ignores events post-designation. /5
But let's be clear: this administration already crossed the Rubicon on that point when Gen. Kelly himself extended TPS for Haiti just six months ago. /6
Kelly's designation relied upon the damage to the island from Hurricane Matthew and rains and flooding in April 2017. If those factors were relevant THEN, how could they be irrelevant NOW? /7
And given that damage from Hurricane Matthew--which clearly set back efforts to recover from the 2010 earthquake--was relevant in May, how could damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria be irrelevant? /8
