House passes a bill to protect Haitian immigrants, in slap back to the
Trump administration
[April 17, 2026]
By LISA MASCARO
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a rare bipartisan moment, the House passed
legislation Thursday that would extend temporary protections for Haitian
immigrants, a long-shot effort fighting back against President Donald
Trump's attempts to end the program.
The bill, pushed forward by House Democrats with a group of Republicans
over the objections of the GOP leadership, would require a three-year
extension of temporary protected status for Haitians by the Trump
administration. That would allow hundreds of thousands of qualifying
immigrants to remain in the United States without fear of deportation.
The vote was 224-204, drawing applause in the chamber. But it faces
uncertainty in the Senate, and the Republican president would almost
certainly seek to veto it.
“I know firsthand how important our Haitian neighbors are to our
communities, to our civic life, to our culture, to our workforce, to our
economy,” said Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, who is
co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus and represents one of the largest
Haitian communities in the country.
During the debate, she recounted the number of Haitian immigrants
working in health care, housing construction, and other industries.
Haitians with temporary legal status "are not the problem, quite the
contrary, they are part of the solution,” she said.
Pressley has said deporting Haitians back to the troubled Caribbean
country would be a “death sentence,” given the effects of natural
disasters and gang violence. "Congress can do the right thing," she
said.
Ten Republicans, many from districts with large numbers of Haitian
residents, joined all Democrats and one independent in voting for
passage.
Congress tries to act before the Supreme Court does
The effort to help 350,000 Haitians living lawfully in the United States
comes as the administration is working to end the temporary legal status
for several groups, exposing them to deportation.
In less than two weeks, the Supreme Court is prepared to consider a
fast-track case that would end the protected status for Haitian and
Syrian immigrants in a challenge widely seen as threatening the broader
program. The administration filed emergency appeals after lower courts
stopped the immediate end of the program.
It is part of the administration's efforts to strip certain immigrant
groups of legal status as the White House works to fulfill Trump's
campaign promise of conducting the largest mass deportation operation in
history. Some 1.3 million people fleeing countries around the world have
been granted temporary protected status in the U.S.
The protections for Haiti, first approved after a devastating 2010
earthquake, have been extended multiple times. The State Department
warns Americans not to travel to Haiti “due to kidnapping, crime,
terrorist activity, civil unrest.”
Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, an
advocacy organization, fought back tears as she described the fear of
deportations coursing through the community.
“We are asking, where will you be on the right side of history?" she
asked at a news conference outside the Capitol. “Or continuing to cause
trauma to people who are asking for nothing other than safety and
protection.”
Trump has described migrants from poorer countries in vulgar terms, and
he has falsely accused Haitian migrants in Ohio of eating their
neighbors’ cats and dogs.
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The U.S. Capitol is photographed Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in
Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
The conservative majority court has allowed the end of temporary
legal status for a total of 600,000 people from Venezuela while
lawsuits play out, leaving them to face potential deportation.
Lawmakers debate whether to help Haitians or stick with Trump
Rep. Laura Gillen, D-N.Y., whose district includes Long Island's
Haitian community, said she promised constituents she would work to
protect their status. She introduced the legislation with Republican
Rep. Mike Lawler of New York as soon as she took office last year.
“It's cruel to expect Haitians to be forced to return to these
deadly, dangerous conditions,” she said at a news conference. “Human
lives are at risk.”
Lawler said there are differences of opinion on immigration policy,
but that Haitian immigrants have become vital to his community and
forcing them out would be unjust and unwise.
“They are small business owners, they are nurses, they are
caregivers, they participate in our economy and take care of
American citizens,” he said. “Congress has a responsibility to act.”
But Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, decried the number of immigrants,
including Haitians, who have entered the U.S., and cited Democratic
efforts to halt funding for enforcement and deportation efforts.
“Make temporary permanent,” he said, “that's their plan.”
Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, said the program was a “backdoor
amnesty” for foreigners.
To Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., the temporary status first granted
under the Obama administration has become an “an open-ended
invitation” for immigrants to enter the country, including some
illegally, and remain.
"The Trump administration has heeded the cries of the American
people," he said.
Using a discharge petition to force votes
The vote was the latest effort by House Democrats to maneuver past
the Republican majority using a discharge petition — once a rare
tool, but now used increasingly to form bipartisan coalitions.
The discharge petition process forces the bill to the House floor
for consideration, powering past House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.,
and GOP leaders. It was used to help pass legislation that required
the Justice Department to release the files of the sex trafficking
investigation of Jeffrey Epstein.
Republicans hold a slim majority in the House and are typically able
to swat back such efforts from Democrats. But Democrats and
Republicans have formed bipartisan alliances to reach the majority
needed on the discharge petitions.
Pressley's effort to discharge the bill won support from four
Republicans on the initial petition, and several more once it came
to the floor vote.
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