Democrats want Biden to declare deportation amnesty for Palestinians in U.S.

Dozens of Democratic lawmakers have signed on to a draft letter prodding the Biden administration to declare a deportation amnesty for Palestinians already in the U.S., The Washington Times has learned.

Led by Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Sen. Richard J. Durbin, Illinois Democrats, the letter urges the president to flex his powers and grant Palestinians what’s known as Deferred Enforced Departure, or to have Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas grant Temporary Protected Status.

The result would be to give Palestinians already on U.S. soil but who lack, or lose, legal status an excuse from deportation. It would also grant them work permits, allowing them to put down deeper roots in the U.S.

The Democrats, dozens of whom have signed the draft letter scheduled to go out Wednesday, said the protections would be a way for the president to make good on his promise to protect civilians trapped by the new war.

“TPS or DED would enable Palestinians currently present in the U.S., including students, tourists, and workers, to be protected from a dangerous return to their homeland while affording them the ability to remain safely in the U.S. and to work legally to support themselves and their families,” the Democrats say in the letter.

TPS and DED are both considered safety valve policies, used in cases where a country is facing a natural disaster, war, political upheaval or pandemic such that forcing its citizens to return would overwhelm the country and potentially be dangerous for the migrants themselves.

The Biden administration has been extravagant in its use of TPS, with grants covering hundreds of thousands of people.

It’s not enough to satisfy immigrant rights activists, who want to see much of the illegal immigrant population in the U.S. covered under TPS.

Palestinians present their own specific challenge as their presence in the U.S. has become deeply controversial in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 sneak attack on Israel and Israel’s responding assault to try to root out Hamas fighters.

A number of Republicans have called for deportation of foreigners who protested in support of Hamas’ attack. And several GOP bills have been introduced to block the Biden team from trying to rush new Palestinians in, similar to the relief efforts that saw tens of thousands of people brought in from Afghanistan and Ukraine.

News last week that a Palestinian man who had been an illegal immigrant, and was here under a pending asylum application had been arrested on a gun charge. The FBI said Sohaib S. Abuayyash had been associating with radicalized individuals and had taken firearms training in preparation for a potential attack.

Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Wisconsin Republican who wrote one of the bills to bock new Palestinian arrivals, said TPS should be a non-starter.

“This White House has proven time and time again that they will go to extreme lengths to sidestep enforcing our immigration laws. But the fact that something like this would be under consideration right now is frankly mind-boggling – even by Biden administration standards,” the congressman told The Times.

Democrats, in their letter, didn’t address potential security risks, instead focusing on the conditions in Gaza and the West Bank, which they said should also be covered.

Spokespersons for Ms. Schakowsky and Mr. Durbin didn’t respond to inquiries for this article.

Granting protection to Palestinians already in the U.S. could be an attractive option to Mr. Biden as he seeks to maintain firm backing for Israel but also placate a vocal wing of the Democratic Party that blames Israel for the sneak attack and frets over the Jewish nation’s response.

On Tuesday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Americans for Justice in Palestine Action fired off a letter to Mr. Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony Blinken asking them to grant TPS and DED.

They said it would be a good way for the Biden administration to show a break with the Republicans who want to block new Palestinian arrivals and expel some who already made it here.

“In response to the ongoing humanitarian crisis, we implore the U.S. government to provide a temporary reprieve from deportation for Palestinians residing in the United States, granting them the opportunity to continue their lives and employment without the constant specter of removal,” the two groups said.

TPS is usually granted to an entire nation but the Democrats said there have been exceptions, such as the designation of Hong Kong or the 1998 designation of Kosovo, which at the time the U.S. didn’t recognize as an independent country.