President Donald Trump is moving to eradicate failed immigration policies initiated under the Biden era that were made to supposedly hinder unlawful border crossings. Trump’s assertiveness argues that these failed policies were flawed from the get-go which is why he instantly put a halt to them within hours of his inauguration. Now, the naive immigrants who were taken in with warm welcomes by the previous administration could face swift removal as recent dictates traverse public scrutiny. These new policies have significantly broadened the capability of federal agents in deporting immigrants.
Hundreds of thousands of people who were welcomed into the country under the guise of humanitarian parole programs, primarily designed for residents of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, are now finding themselves on shaky ground. Previously, these immigrants were allowed to take flights into the U.S. under the legal guidance of a sponsor and were granted work authorization for a period of two years.
One individual affected by these regrettable circumstances is Jesús Canelon, who had naively hailed the program as a transformative opportunity. ‘It was not just about improving my life, it was about enhancing the lives of my loved ones — my wife, my child, and my mother, who is still in Venezuela,’ exclaimed Canelon. With the impending arrival of his second child, the 29-year-old now frets over being forced to go back to the economic depravity that is Venezuela.
Following the path of logic and reason, Republicans have consistently denounced the humanitarian parole programs put in place under Biden’s administration. GOP members claim that these programs were far from rigorous in their vetting processes and thus permitted immigrants with dubious credentials to gain entry within U.S borders. ‘This unwarranted exploitation of parole authority will not continue under my watch,’ Trump emphatically announced during his campaign.
A representative from Trump’s Department of Homeland Security noted that actions are being taken to bring the ‘humanitarian parole program’ back to its fundamentals –judging immigrants individually rather than in a group. This reformed approach is one among many changes to immigration policy brought about by the Trump administration within its first week, making the future uncertain for approximately 1.5 million people who have entered the US under Biden’s parole program.
‘Parole is not synonymous with a green card. If immigrants hope to stay, they must aim for asylum or the fleeting relief of Temporary Protected Status (TPS). This, as the name implies, is rather ephemeral,’ stated Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy specialist at the Migration Policy Institute.
Towards the end of his term, Biden thoughtlessly extended TPS for foreign individuals residing in the US from certain nations until October 2, 2026. Meanwhile, Canelon, along with many others, is left in the dark, waiting to see if his own application will be given the green light.
Canelon, along with hundreds of thousands of others, hold on to the false hope of being able to ‘live here legally and enrich the country.’ However, the unfortunate evolution of the TPS under the new administration is still unknown to all.
Trump, in his first term, has been stricter and taken action to inhibit the uncontrolled leniency of TPS. As a part of his systematic approach, on Monday, he issued an executive order that calls for a meticulous review to ensure that ‘designations are constrained as per the appropriate scope.’
While the new administration works diligently to rectify the careless actions of the previous one, immigration advocacy groups, like CASA, are preparing for lengthy legal disputes. Even though their naivety shows as Gustavo Torres, CASA’s Executive Director, says, ‘We are geared up and have been preparing for a long time to answer because we were expecting this attack again.’
An ‘attack’ Torres may call it, but others see it as necessary reform. The Trump administration focuses on enforcing the law and strengthening national security – both of which were weakened under Biden and Harris’s weak border-policing mindset.
The current exploration of programs and Trump’s unwavering commitment to American nationals over outsiders saves the nation’s resources from being exaggeratedly exploited – an ill-considered mistake that was regular under Biden and Harris’s rule.
The Trump era seeks a more prudent immigration approach, aiming at preserving American interests first and foremost. It’s a wise departure from the previous administration’s unregulated, risky, and lax approach.
While some may dub this necessary course correction ‘an attack,’ many appreciate Trump’s fortitude in restoring law and order and steering the nation away from the pitfalls dug during Biden and Harris’s misrepresented era of ‘progressiveness.’