Unanimous Consent Request--H.R. 1689 (Executive Calendar)

Text in the Record

Unanimous Consent Request--H.R. 1689

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I am beginning a series of Senators who are speaking about Haiti and TPS. The Haitian community is woven into the fabric of our great American family, but Donald Trump is trying to tear it apart by terminating Haiti's temporary protected status. As someone who takes great pride in representing the State that is home to the largest Haitian population in the country, I know just how important the Haitian community is to the American economy, to culture, to society. But, unfortunately, Donald Trump clearly doesn't. Trump has vilified Haitians with his bigoted attacks and stereotypes, over and over again. Now, Trump is trying to force Haitians who are here legally to return to the dangerous conditions they fled in Haiti. Let's be clear: Revoking Haitians' temporary protected status will not only hurt them; it hurts our entire country. In New York, you can't go into a hospital, a nursing home, or a clinic without seeing scores of dedicated healthcare professionals who are fiercely proud of their Haitian heritage. That is true in cities and towns throughout the country. We have heard warnings that if Trump expels our Haitian TPS holders, it will strain our health system and create a gap in our caregiving workforce that will be difficult to fill. These people are our friends. They are our neighbors. They take care of the elderly and people with disabilities. They are entrepreneurs and small businessowners. They work hard and pay taxes. Let's not forget Haitian TPS holders add nearly $6 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Ending TPS doesn't fix our broken system; it only makes things worse. It is cruel. It is counterproductive. Sending 300,000 people to Haiti with little or no support will further destabilize an already severe humanitarian and security crisis on our country's doorstep. I urge all of my colleagues to support our legislation and preserve Haitians' TPS status. I will keep fighting for Haitian Americans in New York and beyond--any time, any place. I yield the floor. Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise in support of H.R. 1689, a bill to designate Haiti for Temporary Protected Status through March 20, 2029. I thank my colleagues Senator Markey and Senator Blunt Rochester for their leadership on this important humanitarian issue. This bill passed the House on a strong bipartisan vote, and the Senate should pass it as well. Supporting this legislation is the right thing to do; nationals of Haiti cannot safely return to their home country. The Department of State has issued a level 4 travel advisory, telling Americans that it is unsafe to travel to Haiti due to the risk of crime, kidnapping, terrorism, civil unrest, and limited healthcare. The Federal Aviation Administration prohibits U.S. carriers from flying to Haiti because of the danger to planes of being shot at by the gangs. But this bill is not just a humanitarian action. Haitian TPS holders have become integral parts of their communities. In fact, our former Senate colleague Mike Dewine--now the Republican Governor of Ohio--called the Trump administration's decision to terminate Haiti's TPS ``a mistake'' and a ``job killer'' that is ``not in the best interest of the United States nor Ohio.''

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He noted that Haitian TPS holders are opening small businesses, working, and raising families in Ohio communities. Illinois is no different; hundreds of Haitian families in Illinois will be impacted by the terminations of TPS. In fact, there are 350,000 Haitian TPS holders nationwide, with 50,000 U.S. citizen children who will be harmed by the administration's decision to terminate Haiti's TPS. They work in critical industries, providing essential care to our elderly and harvesting the food that we rely on each day. Business organizations and labor unions have warned that the decision to end work authorization for many TPS holders could have sweeping consequences for both workers and the U.S. economy. DHS Secretary Mullin has tried to deflect, saying, ``Either try to fill out the paperwork and be here underneath a permanent status, or we'll help you get back to your country.'' But he leaves out the important part: The Trump-Mullin Department of Homeland Security has indefinitely banned processing for any immigration application from a Haitian national. So there is no way for Haitians TPS holders to apply for permanent status. The administration's goal is clear: to force Haitian TPS holders to go back to a country where they are at risk of violence, kidnapping, or death. That should tell you everything you need to know. But the President showed his hand long ago; I was at the meeting in 2018 where he used the term ``s-hole'' nations to describe Haiti and African countries. I will never forget it--it was an embarrassment to the White House, to the Oval Office, and to the Presidency. At the time, President Trump denied making this statement, but now, he proudly proclaims his bigotry toward the Haitian people. I happen to disagree with the President. Haitian TPS holders make our country better every day. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this live unanimous consent request to extend TPS for Haiti. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts. Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, I rise today to underscore the critical importance of maintaining temporary protected status, or TPS, for Haiti. TPS allows nationals from designated countries facing ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or extraordinary conditions to live and to work legally in the United States until it is safe to return to their homeland. First of all, I would like to thank my colleague Lisa Blunt Rochester from Delaware for leading this effort in the U.S. Senate. Thank you. I want to thank the Senator from New York, Mr. Schumer, for his statement today, which is basically reflecting the views of millions of Americans who are outraged at what is transpiring and affecting dramatically the Haitian community in the United States. I would really like to thank Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley for leading the successful effort in the House of Representatives to extend Haiti's TPS designation. I am also thankful to Congresswoman Pressley for her partnership, not only today but in her yearslong fight to advocate for our Haitian-American communities. In January of this year, we cohosted a field hearing in Massachusetts to hear from Haitian TPS holders, business and union leaders, and advocates about the importance of Haiti TPS. And in April, alongside Senator Van Hollen and Congresswoman Wassermann Schultz, we led an amicus brief in the Supreme Court on behalf of 180 Members of Congress in support of Haiti and Syria TPS. But last month, the Supreme Court delivered a devastating ruling in the case. The far-right Justices green-lit the Trump administration's unlawful, racist termination of TPS for Haiti and for Syria. The Court failed a test of morality. It slammed the doors of justice in the face of more than a million TPS holders, including 45,000 Haitian TPS holders in Massachusetts. It is an outrage; it is a travesty. For years, Donald Trump has demonized and attacked Haitian TPS holders. Trump has spewed racist, cruel lies about Haitians. We know that Trump does not want to make America great again. Trump wants to make America hate again. That is what these policies represent--to make America White again. And to do so, he is terminating the critical TPS protections that nearly hundreds of thousands of Haitians rely on. The Trump administration plans to force Haitian TPS holders to return to dangerous and life-threatening conditions. But Haiti continues to confront overlapping crisis, political instability, widespread violence, and a humanitarian emergency that has strained every single facet of daily life. In the wake of Hurricane Matthew, in September of 2016, I traveled to Haiti to deliver relief goods and meet with aid providers, even amidst devastation. The resilience of the Haitian people was palpable. At the time, the country was still battling the cholera epidemic caused by the U.N. peacekeepers after the devastating 2010 earthquake that killed thousands and thousands and thousands of Haitians. Haiti faced this crisis without sufficient international support. And, ultimately, I led the effort to get the United Nations to apologize to Haiti for what the U.N. had done to that country. And, finally, the United Nations did that. I came away from that trip knowing that Haiti would continue to hurt and that the United States should do everything in its power to help the Haitian people. Sadly, Haiti is still hurting. Haiti's security crisis is eroding the promise and future of an entire nation. Armed groups now exert control over much of Port-au-Prince. Kidnappings, targeted violence, and blockades have made it difficult for people to reach hospitals, attend school, and access basic services. At the same time, natural disasters, including earthquakes, hurricanes, and recurrent flooding have further damaged infrastructure that was already stretched to its limits. Together, these forces have left millions without certainty or without security. It is clear that Haitian TPS holders cannot return home safely. And yet--and yet--the State Department currently advises American citizens against traveling to Haiti because of the dangers and instability. That is utter hypocrisy. You can't tell Americans it is too dangerous to go to Haiti and then say that you are going to tell 350,000 Haitians that they have got to go back to a place that is too dangerous for any American to go and visit. It is protected status. It is protecting them against that which is too dangerous. Instead of meeting this undeniable humanitarian catastrophe with compassion, the Trump administration has chosen to compound the trauma. And this brings us to the dangerous and politically cruel reality that Haitian TPS holders face today in our country. For families with children born here--American children--it may mean a choice no parent should ever be forced to make: tearing their family apart or taking a child who has never stepped foot outside of the United States into danger in a country that child has never lived in and that the State Department is telling every American is too dangerous to go to. But parents may have to take children into that situation. Imagine a mother or a father sitting at their kitchen table tonight, looking across at their child and trying to decide if that child has a better chance of survival returning to Haiti, a country consumed by violence, or staying in the United States, separated from the loving care of their parents. If we do not act, this is the brutal reality of family separation that will play out in thousands of homes across this country. Families are being forced to endure agonizing and impossible calculations. We cannot stand by while hundreds and thousands of Haitians who have lived and worked and built lives in the United States are suddenly staring into an abyss of uncertainty. What of the daily life for those who will remain? The moment these protections lapse, TPS holders--who have been here legally for years working, paying taxes, and raising families--will stare down the looming threat of detention and deportation.

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That is what the Trump administration wants: to give ICE agents more work to do on our streets, to give his private army the authority to arrest a million more people to meet racist, cruel quotas. And no one should have to live through that constant fear of a sudden knock on the door or the panic of a random traffic stop. To strip Haitians of their status of protection, which we have given them because of the catastrophic conditions that still exist in Haiti, is to strip them of their agency, of their safety, of their peace of mind. Haitian TPS holders are Massachusetts. They are the United States. They are hard working. They are kind. They are resilient. They are strong in the face adversity and deeply committed to the communities in which they live, whether it is Mattpan or Brockton or Malden. And the same thing is true for all across our country. A Haitian TPS holder is a friend and home-health aide who has taken care of grandma or grandpa for years. A Haitian TPS holder is a coworker and a construction worker that has helped build homes in our neighborhoods. A Haitian TPS holder is a neighbor and a small business owner on Blue Hill Avenue who helps support the livelihoods of others. Haitian TPS holders are essential workers. They are nurses. They are home health aides, educators, grocery store workers. They keep us safe. They keep us fed. They keep us healthy. They have followed the rules. They have committed no crimes at all, and yet they are now being told they are going to be sent home. And these are the same people who have made our seniors smile, that have been in homes all across our country, in homes taking care of our loved ones, in hospitals taking care of our loved ones. That is who they are. They have protected our babies. They soothe our sick. They are us. We have a moral duty to protect TPS holders and provide them with protections and a permanent pathway to citizenship. Let's help them make America home. For generations, Massachusetts has been shaped by our immigrant communities. It was one of our own, Congressman Joe Moakley, who served as one of the architects of the TPS statute and who understood both the moral clarity and the practical necessity of providing refuge in times of crisis. In defending his provision for TPS protection on the House of Representatives floor in 1990, Congressman Moakley emphasized our ``deep moral obligation'' to protect innocent victims fleeing violence abroad. His words remain as urgent and relevant today as they were when he spoke them. Protecting the vulnerable is not a political choice; it is a moral duty. Congresswoman Pressley's success in passing the Haiti TPS bill in the House of Representatives is an inspiration. And now the Senate must pass the bill, which I introduced alongside Senator Blunt Rochester, to designate Haiti for TPS until after the next Presidential election. I have called on every recent administration to designate, extend, and redesignate TPS for Haiti. I have also supported legislation to provide a legal pathway to residency for TPS holders. I will keep supporting this community. The narrative of TPS holders in the United States is a story of resilience, of hope, and of an enduring spirit. Despite facing adversity, TPS holders have continued to contribute to build lives and set down roots. Haitian TPS holders deserve our full protection. We cannot turn our backs on them now. That is the choice which we have to confront right now. And, again, I thank Senator Blunt Rochester for her leadership on this issue as well. And if you would like to be recognized now, or I will make the motion right now and then we will continue the debate. So as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 374, H.R. 1689; further, I ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from Missouri. Mr. SCHMITT. Mr. President, reserving the right to object. I object to this legislation, which would once again extend Haitian temporary protected status. Washington has invented a new definition of temporary--it means permanent. Haitian TPS was supposed to be just 18 months when it began in 2010. Sixteen years later, 350,000 Haitians are still here. Today, after the Supreme Court cleared the way for President Trump to end TPS and send them home, Democrats are trying to change the law to keep the 350,000 Haitians here permanently. Not on my watch. I rise today to block the bill, and also do something else, to make clear that those supporting this bill have a message for the American people: Your vote doesn't matter. Your community doesn't matter. Your livelihood doesn't matter. They are trying to use Washington's oldest immigration trick: Call it temporary, extend it forever, and cash in on a new voter base. The American people voted to end this scam. Washington Democrats are voting to keep it alive and remind you who they think is really in charge. Here is the truth Democrats won't say out loud: They never, ever plan to end any of these programs. They call them temporary to get them started, then they manufacture an excuse for every extension--another year, another election, another deadline ignored. By the time the public notices, temporary status has become permanent residency in everything but name. Democrats can use this scam to build a new political constituency, a new voter base. Haiti was first designated for temporary protected status following the 2010 earthquake. The designation was supposed to last for 18 months; it has now lasted 16 years. Yet, we are still being told that this is a temporary program. In Washington, temporary, apparently, means forever. A child born when Haitian TPS began is nearly old enough to vote or sponsor their family for green cards now. That is how long Washington has been calling this program temporary for the Haitians who are here. TPS was created for emergencies. Democrats turned it into a one-way racket towards permanent mass migration. Here is how the racket works: An emergency creates temporary status. Then the emergency passes, but the status stays. The deadline arrives, but Washington extends it. The voters demand enforcement; the Democrats refuse. Every click moves towards permanence; none moves back toward the law. That is the TPS racket. Democrats have decided that mass migration must continue and that no President chosen by the American people, who ran on this issue, by the way, will ever be permitted to end it. That is the real purpose of the bill. Its supporters will wrap this bill in language of compassion, but they never seem to have any compassion for the American worker, competing against an ever-expanding cheap labor supply. They have no compassion for families priced out of housing, workers whose wages are undercut, schools punished and pushed beyond capacity, or communities forced to absorb decisions Washington made for them that they voted against. Their compassion always flows outward, but the bill always arrives on your doorstep. America is not a global refugee camp. America is not a get-rich scheme for the Third World. America is our home. And when houseguests become squatters, you don't delay enforcement; you call the sheriff and you send them home. That is exactly what we must do here today. If Democrats want 350,000 Haitians to stay permanently, they should say it plainly. Introduce a bill. Put your name on it. Vote for the permanent status. Then explain that vote to the American people. Quit with the games. But stop calling permanent immigration temporary. The voters are not stupid, and they already made their choice. The voters demanded enforcement. President Trump is delivering on that, but Democrats are fighting to keep the same old scam alive.

I have the power to stop this nonsense bill, and I am going to use it. That is why I am here today. So I object to the bill, which would keep 350,000 Haitians here permanently. I object to changing temporary to permanent. I object to flooding American communities with cheap foreign labor.

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I object to treating foreigners as the priority and Americans as the afterthought. I object to mass migration. Temporary must mean temporary; and elections have consequences, therefore, I object. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The objection is heard. The Senator from Massachusetts. Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, the objection we just heard is exactly why this law to protect Haiti

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