WASHINGTON – On Friday, the Supreme Court once more enabled the Trump administration to remove temporary legal protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants. This decision could potentially expose almost 1 million people to deportation.

The court lifted a previous order that had provided humanitarian parole protections for over 500,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. Additionally, the court permitted the withdrawal of temporary legal status for approximately 350,000 Venezuelan migrants in a separate ruling.

During his campaign, Republican President Donald Trump pledged to deport millions. Since taking office, he has worked to undo Biden administration policies that allowed migrants to legally reside in the U.S.

Trump amplified false rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio with legal status under the humanitarian parole program were abducting and eating pets during his only debate with President Joe Biden, according to court documents.

His administration filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court after a federal judge in Boston blocked the administration’s push to end the program.

Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson wrote in dissent that the effect of the court’s order is “to have the lives of half a million migrants unravel all around us before the courts decide their legal claims.” Justice Sonia Sotomayor joined the dissent.