To: Secretary Kristi Noem,
Department of Homeland Security
From: Eric C. Welch
Date: February 7, 2026
Subject: Arbitrary and Discriminatory Termination of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
It is with profound dismay and moral urgency that this letter is issued in response to the recent decision by you to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals. This action, grounded not in humanitarian principle or legal precedent but in inflammatory rhetoric and xenophobic sentiment, represents a grave betrayal of American values and international obligations.
Your decision to revoke TPS for over 350,000 Haitian individuals—many of whom have lived in the United States for over a decade, contributed to local economies, and raised American-born children—cannot be justified under any reasonable interpretation of public safety, national security, or immigration law. The cited justification of “reduced risk of harm” in Haiti is both speculative and disingenuous. As detailed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s opinion in Miot v. Trump, No. 25-cv-02471 (ACR) (2026), the record shows a total disregard for the “perfect storm of suffering” currently documented in Haiti.
The legal standard for TPS revocation requires a good-faith evaluation of whether the conditions that led to the designation persist. Your decision fails this standard, relying instead on political expediency. While you claim conditions are "suitable for return," your own Department of State maintains a Level 4 "Do Not Travel" advisory due to kidnapping and civil unrest. To ignore a record of "staggering humanitarian toll" suggests a preordained agenda that bypasses statutory requirements.
Your public statements regarding Haitian immigrants—most notably your characterization of them as “killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies” from “damn countries”—are not merely inflammatory; they are a calculated effort to dehumanize a vulnerable population. Your remarks echo the worst traditions of anti-immigrant propaganda, drawing parallels to historical campaigns that justified exclusion and systemic oppression.
Furthermore, your assertions that Haitians are “coming here to take our jobs and our homes” are factually indefensible. TPS holders are vital economic contributors. Haitian TPS holders alone contribute approximately $1.3 billion in annual tax revenue. Far from being "leeches," 14.5% of TPS holders are entrepreneurs—a rate significantly higher than the 9.3% of the U.S.-born workforce. By terminating this status, you are choosing to turn law-abiding, tax-paying residents into an "unlawful" population overnight, perversely straining the systems you claim to protect.
Further, the public record of your personal history—specifically the decision to kill a companion animal under the pretext of behavioral issues—underscores a troubling pattern of disregard for life. The juxtaposition of this act with your public stance on Haitian TPS reflects a broader ethos: one that values control and dominance over compassion and human dignity.
The decision to end Haitian TPS is not just a policy failure—it is a moral failure. Your rhetoric has set a dangerous precedent that values political ambition over conscience. Every individual, regardless of origin, deserves safety, dignity, and the right to live without fear.
Sincerely,
Eric C. Welch
"Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people" (Isaiah 10:1-2, NIV),
"The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt" (Leviticus 19:34, NKJV).
List of Sources
Fritz Emmanuel Lesly Miot, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al., Case No. 25-cv-02471 (ACR), Memorandum Opinion (Feb. 2, 2026). https://reason.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/gov.uscourts.dcd_.283214.124.0_1.pdf
8 U.S.C. § 1254a (Temporary Protected Status statute).
90 Fed. Reg. 54733 (Nov. 28, 2025), Termination of the Designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/11/28/2025-21379/termination-of-the-designation-of-haiti-for-temporary-protected-status
Official statements by Secretary Kristi Noem via X (@Sec_Noem) dated Dec. 1, 2025 (referring to "killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies").
Quote from X: I am recommending a full travel ban on every damn country that's been flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies. Our forefathers built this nation on blood, sweat, and the unyielding love of freedom—not for foreign invaders to slaughter our heroes, suck dry our hard-earned tax dollars, or snatch the benefits owed to AMERICANS. WE DON'T WANT THEM. NOT ONE." https://x.com/Sec_Noem/status/1995642101779124476
Center for American Progress / Miot v. Trump evidence regarding $5.2 billion in total TPS tax contributions and $1.3 billion specifically from Haitian holders. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/resources-on-temporary-protected-status/
U.S. Department of State, Haiti Travel Advisory (Level 4: Do Not Travel) reissued July 2025.
Journal of Migration and Human Security data regarding 14.5% entrepreneurship rate among TPS holders vs. 9.3% for U.S.-born citizens. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/economic-contributions-tps-holders/
https://www.fwd.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Haiti-TPS-Fact-Sheet_January-2026.pdf
No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward (Kristi Noem, 2024), regarding personal accounts of animal management. page 178+
Representative Sorenson
+ cc: Senators Durbin and Duckworth
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