On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court handed the Trump administration a major victory with Mullin v. Doe on Temporary Protected Status. The decision will likely have a major impact on Springfield, Ohio, which has a significant Haitian population.
As the Court ruled in its 6-3 decision, the immigrants here on temporary status are not entitled to court orders postponing their removal of protections. The TPS statute bars judicial review of the claims in the case.
On Sunday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” why he considered the decision to be “a mistake for a number of reasons.”
U.S. carriers are prohibited from flying into Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. The governor described Haiti as “a very, very dangerous place,” as gangs control the country.
DeWine also spoke about the effect deportations would have on Ohio.
“It is not in the United States’ interests, certainly not in Ohio’s interest, to have people who are working every single day, who are supporting a family, who are buying houses, fixing up old houses, starting businesses, and then put deep roots in this country and really are contributing, and yank them out,” he said.
The governor said deportations could impact manufacturing, the food industry, and health care in Ohio, adding that population growth in the state largely comes from immigration.
DeWine’s Democrat counterparts, including Kathy Hochul of New York, have been similarly fired up. Where they differ, however, is whether to fight it.
“Look, I accept the Supreme Court’s decision,” DeWine said. “In this country, they’re the final say of what the law is. But I think that it’s important that we separate the legal decision that was made by the Supreme Court with the issue of public policy.”
He called for the Trump administration to “reconsider what they are doing.”
In April, Ohio House Republicans voted to extend TPS. The extension passed 224-204, with 10 Republicans and one independent voting with Democrats.
DeWine’s predecessor, John Kasich, posted his response on X.
“There is an opportunity for the Congress to extend Temporary Protected Status, because things in Haiti are just deteriorating and sending people back there with their families to me is just crazy,” Kasich said of the decision.
He added that if Congress does not extend TPS, “that’s the law.” But he concluded, “If that’s the law, then the law’s an ass.”
The Sunday social media post was thoroughly ratioed, with 29,000 replies as of Tuesday morning. Many quoted reposts, including from the Trump War Room and Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, referred to Kasich as “America Last.”
