I regret to inform you that yet another federal district court judge has rendered yet another decision oozing with active hostility for the Trump administration, this one involving Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians.
This isn't the first unhinged decision we've seen from Judge Ana Reyes of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia — she's earned herself a misconduct complaint and a smack from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals over transgender service in the military.
READ MORE: Trump Scores Another Legal Hit As DC Appeals Court Upholds Transgender Service Limits
I'll give Reyes this, though — she's consistent.
In this case, five Haitian nationals with TPS sued the U.S. government to stop Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s planned termination of Haiti’s TPS designation, which was scheduled to take effect on February 3, 2026. TPS is a statutory humanitarian program designed to allow eligible nationals of designated countries to live and work in the U.S. and avoid deportation when conditions in their home countries are unsafe due to ongoing conflict, disaster, or other extraordinary conditions.
Reyes' decision, issued on Monday evening, grants the plaintiffs’ motion for a stay of the termination under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Reyes first determined that the court had jurisdiction to review the government’s action, rejecting the government’s argument that statutory provisions barred judicial review of the TPS termination. The court held that the statutory language stripping review of a “determination” by the DHS secretary does not encompass procedural and constitutional challenges to how the decision was made, so long as any remedy would not modify the substantive determination itself.
On the merits of the motion, the court found that the plaintiffs were substantially likely to succeed in showing that Secretary Noem’s termination decision violated the law and constituted arbitrary and capricious agency action under the APA. First, the court found that the record showed no meaningful consultation with agencies such as the State Department about Haiti’s conditions, despite publicly available evidence showing severe instability and danger there — something which the statute requires prior to terminating a country’s TPS designation.
According to Reyes, the pattern of terminating TPS designations across multiple countries suggested that Noem had applied a pre-determined agenda rather than conducting individualized country assessments as required by the statute. Moreover, Reyes found that the plaintiffs had a plausible claim that discrimination influenced the decision-making process.
Reyes further found that if TPS termination were allowed to take effect while the litigation is ongoing, hundreds of thousands of Haitian nationals could lose work authorization and be subject to detention and deportation to an unsafe country, which would constitute a harm that cannot be undone later.
Ultimately, the court concluded that maintaining humanitarian protections for a vulnerable population while the legal review proceeds outweighs any asserted government interest in immediate termination.
Thus, Reyes issued a stay of the TPS termination, holding that Noem’s decision “shall be null, void, and of no legal effect” during the ongoing litigation, thereby preserving protections for Haitian TPS holders until further order.
ALSO SEE: OH's Bernie Moreno Fires Back at Sherrod Brown Over Pushing for Extension of TPS for Haitians
Trump Yanks Temporary Protection Status for Over 350K Haitians, Sets Deadline for Their Departure
The administration has responded to the decision, promising an appeal:
Supreme Court, here we come.
— Tricia McLaughlin (@TriciaOhio) February 3, 2026
This is lawless activism that we will be vindicated on.
Haiti’s TPS was granted following an earthquake that took place over 15 years ago, it was never intended to be a de facto amnesty program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it… https://t.co/wejySOSaXJ
Supreme Court, here we come.
This is lawless activism that we will be vindicated on.
Haiti’s TPS was granted following an earthquake that took place over 15 years ago, it was never intended to be a de facto amnesty program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it for decades.
Temporary means temporary and the final word will not be from an activist judge legislating from the bench.
Obviously, there will be more to come on this issue. Stay tuned.
Editor's Note: Unelected federal judges are hijacking President Trump's agenda and insulting the will of the people.
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