Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended the administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans, arguing that conditions in the country have improved following the U.S. detention of Nicolás Maduro.
The Trump administration terminated TPS for Venezuelans in 2025 a move that affects roughly 600,000 people who had legal protection from deportation and work authorization. The Supreme Court has allowed the termination to proceed while litigation continues. President Donald Trump has also halted asylum applications from 19 countries, including Venezuela.
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Noem said Venezuela is “more free today than it was yesterday” and insisted that TPS holders have alternative legal options. “Every individual that was under TPS has the opportunity to apply for refugee status,” she said. “We need to make sure that our programs actually mean something and that we are following the law.”
FOX NEWS: There’s tremendous concern among the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who are here in the US legally through TPS. Are you gonna force them to return to Venezuela even as their govt is in complete flux?
KRISTI NOEM: Venezuela is more free than it was yesterday, and… pic.twitter.com/VHowskEE9r
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 4, 2026
Newly elected Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins called the TPS termination “reckless, dangerous and wrong” over the weekend, urging the administration to reinstate protections. “The instability unfolding in Venezuela today makes it even clearer that the country remains unsafe for people to return,” Higgins said in a statement.
An original report by the Miami Herald over the weekend described widespread uncertainty among Venezuelans in the United States following Maduro’s capture and Trump’s remarks that the United States would “run” Venezuela during a transition period. “Once again, I have to change my life plans because of political decisions that are completely out of my control,” Valentina Veloz, a Venezuelan living in Tampa, told the Herald, adding that she had put plans to return to Venezuela on hold due to security concerns.
Advocates say the TPS rollback has already left families vulnerable. “We are victims of the Nicolás Maduro regime, but we are also victims of the Trump administration policies,” said Adelys Ferro of the Venezuelan-American Caucus.
Originally published on Latin Times
