Ann Coulter applauded Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen’s decision to rescind Temporary Protection Status for Salvadorans Monday, telling The Daily Caller, “They’ve got to go.”
According to the Department of Homeland Security, countries that receive Temporary Protection Status (TPS) are defined as having “ongoing armed conflict (such as civil war), an environmental disaster (such as earthquake or hurricane), or an epidemic, [and] other extraordinary and temporary conditions.”
El Salvador has maintained TPS since 2001 when a major earthquake devastated the country. The Department of Homeland Security said in a press release Monday, “The decision to terminate TPS for El Salvador was made after a review of the disaster-related conditions upon which the country’s original designation was based and an assessment of whether those originating conditions continue to exist as required by statute. Based on careful consideration of available information, including recommendations received as part of an inter-agency consultation process, the Secretary determined that the original conditions caused by the 2001 earthquakes no longer exist.”
The DHS stated, “Additionally, in recent years, the U.S. government has been repatriating individuals back to El Salvador – more than 39,000 in the last two years -demonstrating that the temporary inability of El Salvador to adequately return their nationals after the earthquake has been addressed.”
When asked about the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS for Salvadorans, Coulter told The Daily Caller, “To quote the greatest presidential candidate in my lifetime: They’ve got to go.”
TPS can be renewed from 6 to 18 months at a time, with no limit on renewals. It does not necessitate that applicants be legal immigrants to the United States.
The DHS will delay termination of TPS for a period of 18 months, which, the DHS says, will “provide time for individuals with TPS to arrange for their departure or to seek an alternative lawful immigration status in the United States, if eligible.”