Another Florida Republican Breaks From Trump Admin to Request Protections for Venezuelans Following TPS Suspension

Republican U.S. Rep Mario Diaz-Balart (Fl-25) urged Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Thursday not to deport migrants without criminal records following a Trump administration decision to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans.

Diaz-Balart, who has been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2003 sent Noam a letter Thursday, congratulating her for her new post, while also urging her to keep protecting some Venezuelan migrants, Miami Herald reports.

"I respectfully request, within all applicable rules and regulations, that you assess all options available to ensure that Venezuelan nationals without criminal records are not forcibly returned to one of the most repressive dictatorships in the world," the Miami Republican wrote.

Diaz-Balart's plea comes after the Trump administration moved to end the TPS program this week for 300,000 Venezuelans in the United States, leaving the population vulnerable to potential deportation in the coming months.

Noam issued a notice Monday to end the program. The notice was officially published in the Federal Register Wednesday and will take effect 60 days after that.

The notice stated that the administration has concluded that Venezuela "no longer continues to meet the conditions" for its 2023 TPS designation, which was meant to be valid until April. "The Secretary has determined it is contrary to the national interest to permit the covered Venezuelan nationals to remain in the United States," the memo read. Some 350,000 Venezuelans are covered by the 2023 designation, the overall figure for all nationals being over 600,000.

Noem has yet to make a decision on whether to extend TPS for the remaining Venezuelans covered by the designation, who are protected until September.

"Overall, certain conditions for the 2023 TPS designation of Venezuela may continue," she wrote in a memo published on Wednesday. "However, there are notable improvements in several areas such as the economy, public health, and crime that allow for these nationals to be safely returned to their home country."

Diaz-Balart isn't the first Florida Republican to break from the Trump administration on this decision. In fact, he has partnered with Republican colleagues Rep. Carlos Gimenez (Fl-26) and Maria Elvira Salazar (Fl-27) to advocate for the program or for a review of the beneficiaries on a case-by-case basis.

"Unfortunately, that reality remains unchanged," Diaz-Balart wrote to Noem. "The humanitarian crises in Venezuela have only worsened in the intervening period, and political persecution has escalated."

Similarly, Doral Mayor Christi Fraga showed her criticism for the move in a recent exclusive interview with The Latin Times.

"I completely disagree with the Secretary of Homeland Security," Fraga said. "There is no evidence that conditions in Venezuela have improved. On the contrary, I believe they have worsened."

"The perfect example of this was the outcome of the July 28 elections, where the people's voice was not respected and democracy was disregarded. Maduro is an usurper and must step down to allow the rightful president of Venezuela, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, to take office. That is the number one piece of evidence that conditions in Venezuela have not improved," she continued.