SAN FRANCISCO (BN24) — A federal judge in California has blocked the Trump administration’s effort to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for more than 60,000 immigrants from Central America and Asia, including nationals from Honduras, Nicaragua, and Nepal. The ruling halts a significant component of the administration’s broader crackdown on immigration.
U.S. District Judge Trina L. Thompson ruled Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), under Secretary Kristi Noem, failed to provide an objective review of ongoing conditions in the affected countries before announcing the terminations. Instead, the administration moved to strip legal protections despite persistent political instability, economic hardship, and natural disasters in the region.
Thompson’s ruling keeps TPS protections in place while the case continues, with the next hearing set for November 18. Without the ruling, 7,000 Nepalese would have lost their legal status by August 5, followed by the expiration of protections for 51,000 Hondurans and nearly 3,000 Nicaraguans on September 8. Most of these immigrants have lived and worked legally in the U.S. for more than two decades.
In a strongly worded opinion, Thompson said the decision to end TPS was driven by racial and political bias rather than legitimate policy review. She noted that President Donald Trump and Secretary Noem’s public statements reflected a “discriminatory belief that certain immigrant populations will replace the white population.” Her ruling cited remarks that she said amounted to a rejection of immigrants “because of their names” and an attempt to “purify their blood.”
“The freedom to live fearlessly, the opportunity of liberty, and the American dream. That is all Plaintiffs seek,” she wrote.
TPS is a humanitarian safeguard allowing nationals from designated countries to live and work in the U.S. legally when returning to their homeland is unsafe due to armed conflict, natural disasters, or extraordinary conditions. Although intended to be temporary, many recipients have established deep roots in American society.
The judge also cited potential economic harm, estimating the decision to terminate TPS for these groups could result in a $1.4 billion blow to the U.S. economy. In practical terms, it could mean loss of employment, health insurance, and family separation for tens of thousands of people.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs, including the National TPS Alliance, argued that the Trump administration’s move was predetermined and politically motivated. Ahilan Arulanantham, representing the plaintiffs, criticized the DHS for giving families only two months to leave the country, calling the process “awful.”
The Biden administration had previously indicated it would review TPS decisions made under Trump, but advocates say legal action remains necessary as cases from the Trump era continue to move through the courts.
Officials from affected countries expressed cautious optimism. Honduras Deputy Foreign Minister Antonio García said the ruling allows immigrants “to work in peace, tranquility and legally,” and voiced hope that the judicial process would ultimately prevail over executive action.
Meanwhile, conditions in countries like Nicaragua remain dire. The government of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, has systematically dismantled civil society and political opposition, prompting hundreds of thousands to flee into exile. A U.N. panel in February accused Nicaragua’s government of committing serious human rights abuses to maintain absolute control.
The Trump administration has also ended TPS designations for hundreds of thousands from Venezuela, Haiti, Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Cameroon, with many challenges still pending in federal courts.
The Justice Department argued in court that Secretary Noem acted within her lawful authority and that the administration’s immigration and foreign policy goals justify ending the protections. “It is not meant to be permanent,” said Justice Department attorney William Weiland.
