Latest news with #Cubans
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
US appeals court weighs Trump move to end of thousands of migrants' status
July 29 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday urged a U.S. appeals court to rule that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem acted lawfully when she revoked the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans living in the United States. U.S. Department of Justice attorney Drew Ensign told a three-judge panel of the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that a lower-court judge had wrongly concluded Noem lacked the discretion to categorically end the immigration "parole" granted to approximately 430,000 migrants by Trump's Democratic predecessor Joe Biden. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, halted the agency's action on April 14, saying Noem could only revoke previously granted parole and work authorizations for migrants on a case-by-case basis. Ensign argued that was wrong, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's May 30 decision to put Talwani's ruling in favor of a class of migrants on hold pending further appeals, which allowed the parole terminations to take effect. "As the Supreme Court has already implicitly recognized by a lopsided vote, the government is likely to prevail on appeal, either in this court or, if necessary, in the Supreme Court," he said. "This court should reject the plaintiffs' brazen request to defy the Supreme Court." The Biden administration, starting in 2022, let Venezuelans who entered the United States by air request a two-year parole if they passed security checks and had a U.S. financial sponsor. Biden expanded that to Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans in 2023. Ensign said Noem was legally entitled to categorically end those parole programs, saying she "profoundly disagrees" with the Biden administration's view that they were needed to alleviate pressures at the border and improve the overall immigration system. All three judges on the 1st Circuit panel were appointed by Democratic presidents. In May, before the Supreme Court acted, the panel declined to halt Talwani's order, saying Noem had not made a strong showing that her categorical termination of early grants of parole would be upheld on appeal. While liberal Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor publicly dissented in a lengthy opinion, the majority on the nine-member Supreme Court provided no reasoning for why it was staying Talwani's decision. U.S. Circuit Judge William Kayatta during Tuesday's argument said that placed him and his 1st Circuit colleagues in an "unusual situation" where they are asked to look to the Supreme Court for guidance on how to proceed and were given only the "bottom line." But he told Justin Cox, a lawyer for a group of migrants pursuing the class action before Talwani, that the justices' order may indicate they "felt that you're at the short end of the stick on the likelihood of success on the merits." Cox said the lack of reasoning in the Supreme Court's order was a reason not to defer to it, saying the 1st Circuit "would be speculating if it sought to assign a particular meaning to it." U.S. Circuit Judge Gustavo Gelpí predicted that even if the 1st Circuit upheld Talwani's decision, the Homeland Security Department could seek to again terminate the migrants' parole status through a new agency action. But Cox said a ruling in the plaintiffs' favor would still be "quite valuable" regardless. "At a minimum, it would let our clients and the class members have the dignity of leaving on their own terms, as opposed to being subjected to the kinds of removal and detention processes that are happening right now," he said. The case is Doe v. Noem, 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 25-1384. For the plaintiffs: Justin Cox of the Law Office of Justin B Cox For the United States: Drew Ensign of the U.S. Department of Justice Read more: US Supreme Court lets Trump revoke humanitarian legal status for migrants US appeals court rejects Trump bid to revoke thousands of migrants' status US judge to block Trump from revoking thousands of migrants' legal status
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
US appeals court weighs Trump's authority to revoke legal status for thousands of migrants
July 29 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday urged a U.S. appeals court to rule that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem acted lawfully when she revoked the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans living in the United States. U.S. Department of Justice attorney Drew Ensign told a three-judge panel of the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that a lower-court judge had wrongly concluded Noem lacked the discretion to categorically end the immigration "parole" granted to approximately 430,000 migrants by Trump's Democratic predecessor Joe Biden. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, halted the agency's action on April 14, saying Noem could only revoke previously granted parole and work authorizations for migrants on a case-by-case basis. Ensign argued that was wrong, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's May 30 decision to put Talwani's ruling in favor of a class of migrants on hold pending further appeals, which allowed the parole terminations to take effect. "As the Supreme Court has already implicitly recognized by a lopsided vote, the government is likely to prevail on appeal, either in this court or, if necessary, in the Supreme Court," he said. "This court should reject the plaintiffs' brazen request to defy the Supreme Court." The Biden administration, starting in 2022, let Venezuelans who entered the United States by air request a two-year parole if they passed security checks and had a U.S. financial sponsor. Biden expanded that to Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans in 2023. Ensign said Noem was legally entitled to categorically end those parole programs, saying she "profoundly disagrees" with the Biden administration's view that they were needed to alleviate pressures at the border and improve the overall immigration system. All three judges on the 1st Circuit panel were appointed by Democratic presidents. In May, before the Supreme Court acted, the panel declined to halt Talwani's order, saying Noem had not made a strong showing that her categorical termination of early grants of parole would be upheld on appeal. While liberal Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor publicly dissented in a lengthy opinion, the majority on the nine-member Supreme Court provided no reasoning for why it was staying Talwani's decision. U.S. Circuit Judge William Kayatta during Tuesday's argument said that placed him and his 1st Circuit colleagues in an "unusual situation" where they are asked to look to the Supreme Court for guidance on how to proceed and were given only the "bottom line." But he told Justin Cox, a lawyer for a group of migrants pursuing the class action before Talwani, that the justices' order may indicate they "felt that you're at the short end of the stick on the likelihood of success on the merits." Cox said the lack of reasoning in the Supreme Court's order was a reason not to defer to it, saying the 1st Circuit "would be speculating if it sought to assign a particular meaning to it." U.S. Circuit Judge Gustavo Gelpí predicted that even if the 1st Circuit upheld Talwani's decision, the Homeland Security Department could seek to again terminate the migrants' parole status through a new agency action. But Cox said a ruling in the plaintiffs' favor would still be "quite valuable" regardless. "At a minimum, it would let our clients and the class members have the dignity of leaving on their own terms, as opposed to being subjected to the kinds of removal and detention processes that are happening right now," he said. The case is Doe v. Noem, 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 25-1384. For the plaintiffs: Justin Cox of the Law Office of Justin B Cox For the United States: Drew Ensign of the U.S. Department of Justice Read more: US Supreme Court lets Trump revoke humanitarian legal status for migrants US appeals court rejects Trump bid to revoke thousands of migrants' status US judge to block Trump from revoking thousands of migrants' legal status
Politico
a day ago
- Health
- Politico
Trump immigration policy exacerbates health care workforce shortages
Beat Memo Health care providers are calling on the Trump administration to reverse changes to immigration policy that have compounded New York's workforce shortages in long-term care, according to the state Association of Health Care Providers. The association is urging the Department of Homeland Security to roll back the termination of categorical parole programs for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, as well as the partial rollback of temporary protected status or TPS extension and the termination of TPS status for Venezuelans. Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced sweeping cuts to temporary protections for immigrants, including the 76,000 Hondurans and Nicaraguans on TPS. Immigrants without another type of immigration status will be at risk of deportation come September. 'The home care sector is already struggling with a workforce shortage, and the removal of potentially tens of thousands of legally authorized workers will only deepen the crisis and put essential services out of reach for those who need them most,' Laura Ehrich, HCP's vice president of public policy, said in a statement. In a survey conducted among HCP's membership, licensed home care agencies across the state reported that more than 75 percent of their workforce consists of immigrants who are authorized to work. Nearly half of the agencies that responded to the survey said they have lost staff due to the changes in immigration policy. In addition, more than half of the respondents said they are struggling to fill shifts, and 25 percent said they are having trouble recruiting new staff. In New York City, health care workers — especially ones in support roles, such as home care and personal care aides — are more likely to be foreign-born than all other kinds of workers, according to a January report by the Center for Migration Studies. The vast majority are naturalized or legal noncitizens, the report found based on 2022 data. Ehrich noted that, with the state's growing population of older adults, the long-term care industry cannot afford to lose workers. 'These changes are short-sighted, harmful and must be reversed,' Ehrich said. The group is also calling on the federal government to find permanent immigration solutions for workers in the industry to stay in the country. IN OTHER NEWS: — AIM Independent Living Center was awarded $2 million from the state Office of Mental Health to improve the mental health of farmers and agribusiness workers and their families. AIM will receive the funding over five years for statewide implementation of the Farmers Supporting Farmers program, which provides free, confidential consultation services to approximately 1,000 New Yorkers. GOT TIPS? Send story ideas and feedback to Maya Kaufman at mkaufman@ and Katelyn Cordero at kcordero@ Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You'll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day's biggest stories. Odds and Ends NOW WE KNOW — The fear of losing Medicaid coverage has some parents rushing to vaccinate their children. TODAY'S TIP — Experts share advice on assessing your risk of Lyme Disease. STUDY THIS — Via STAT: Lilly's Alzheimer treatment was endorsed by European regulators, the drug was shown to slow patients' decline, but comes with side effect concerns. WHAT WE'RE READING — Trump voters wanted relief from medical bills. For millions, the bills are about to get bigger. (KFF Health News) — States, cities face loss of vaccination programs and staff after baffling cuts to federal funding. (CNN) — An unusual FDA panel on antidepressant use during pregnancy elevated skeptics of the drugs. (STAT) Around POLITICO — Republican senators urge White House to release delayed NIH funds, Katherine Tully-McManus reports. — FDA commissioner says he has no 'preconceived plans' on policy changes for abortion drug, Nicole Markus reports. MISSED A ROUNDUP? Get caught up on the New York Health Care Newsletter.
Miami Herald
4 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
China plans to open a solar-powered shoe factory in Cuba
China will open a new solar-powered factory in Cuba that will make flip-flops and other footwear amid the island's severe energy crisis. It is a joint venture created on July 7 called DuoNex S.A. between a Cuban entity and Chinese company Hangzhou Iunke Industrial Development Co., Ltd., according to the official Cuban press. A previous report stated that the new company was established with the goal of 'developing, producing and marketing footwear, leather goods, saddlery, plastics and textiles.' According to the official newspaper Granma, María Eugenia Fabra Tamayo, Business Director at Industrias Nexus S.A., says the goal of the company is to produce up to three pairs of shoes per capita. The first production lines will include flip-flops, protective boots, athletic and executive footwear. Fabra said that the products will be targeted at sectors such as communications, tourism, agriculture, the sugar industry, non-state management, and the general population, through chain stores and e-commerce platforms. Fabra also said that the products would not be limited to the domestic market, but that the plan is to export them to Latin America and the Caribbean, although the destination countries were not specified. The company also plans to produce plastic products, such as containers for industrial paint. The factory will be located in the municipality of Regla in Havana, with an initial workforce of 63 and the creation of more than 40 additional jobs. While Cuba will provide the labor and infrastructure, China will be responsible for providing designs, molds, financing for technological improvements and purchasing spare parts. China will also supply some of the raw materials, while the Cuban partner will negotiate agreements with other national companies to obtain leather and packaging materials. To ensure operational capacity during frequent power outages, the company will rely on photovoltaic solar panels imported from China, with the goal of becoming energy self-sufficient. China has become one of Cuba's main allies amid the deep crisis plaguing the island, strengthening ties in key sectors such as tourism. The Cuban government has eliminated visa requirements for Chinese travelers, while this year China began offering Cubans free visas to visit the Asian country if they meet the requirements.
Miami Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Radio Martí is alive and well and transmitting to Cuba from Miami. Here's how
On March 26, the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, which oversees Radio and TV Martí reopened its doors amid a sweeping transformation of its parent agency, the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM). In the face of staffing limitations, we recommitted to our core mission: delivering timely, accurate and uncensored information to the Cuban people. OCB is not just a media organization — it is a lifeline to truth for millions living under authoritarian control. What we achieved in the weeks that followed is a testament to our team's dedication and to the enduring value of public service journalism. Here's how we did it: Through careful analysis of audience patterns and programming needs, we realigned our content schedules to focus on high-impact time blocks. Our review of staff roles allowed us to reassign tasks more efficiently, and we adjusted work shifts to ensure full coverage with fewer hands. We relaunched Radio Martí with a dynamic, 24-hour format featuring original programming, trusted newscasts and curated evergreen content. Our technical and production teams were restructured and unified under a single editorial and operational vision. Since March, we have done more than resume operations — we have innovated. We launched Asuntos de Estado – State Affairs in partnership with the U.S. State Department's Media Hub of the Americas, bringing direct and transparent diplomatic insights to the Cuban public. Our collaboration with Trinity Audio, an AI-powered text-to-speech tool, surpassed 1.5 million plays in one year — clear proof of growing demand for our content. On May 20, we marked the 40th anniversary of Radio Martí. The celebration drew broad support: Miami U.S. Rep. Congressman Carlos Giménez submitted the date into the Congressional Record and Miami-Dade County issued an official proclamation delivered by Commissioner Juan Carlos 'JC' Bermúdez. We premiered two short documentaries that reflect the spirit of resistance and the enduring demand for freedom among Cubans. 'Ferrer, Portrait of a Dissident'chronicles over 20 years of activism by José Daniel Ferrer, one of the island's most prominent opposition figures. 'Ramón Saúl Sánchez and His Struggle' highlights the tireless work of the well-known Cuban exile leader and advocate for human rights and democratic change. Both films serve not only as tributes to individual courage but also as reminders of a broader movement that continues to push for liberty — on and off the island. We also resumed shortwave broadcasting to Cuba. On June 27, transmissions from the Edward R. Murrow Transmitting Station in North Carolina returned to the air on three frequencies. This expanded reach is more than a technical achievement — it is a moral obligation to ensure our signal breaks through censorship barriers. Since the start of FY 2025, OCB has recorded over 622 million video views on Facebook, with 223.7 million meeting the 3-second industry engagement standard, and 65% of those views coming from Cuba. Our efforts are reaching those inside Cuba. In June alone, Facebook videos reached 100.7 million views, including 35.5 million 3-second views. On YouTube, we recorded 1.6 million views in June, with 51.3% of that audience in Cuba. Overall, YouTube has reached 19.4 million views this fiscal year, with 52% originating from inside the island. These figures are verified by Meta Business Suite's Professional Dashboard. None of this would have been possible without the consistent support of Cuban American elected officials who have fiercely defended OCB's mission. In President Donald Trump's National Security Memorandum, OCB's role was explicitly reaffirmed as a key component of the renewed Cuba Internet Task Force, charged with expanding online access to the Cuban population. That designation was not symbolic — it was strategic. The ability to inform, connect and empower a society isolated from the world begins with access to truth. OCB remains a vital actor in that effort. OCB has proven that with purpose, resilience and innovation, we can achieve extraordinary results. Our mission remains clear: to be a trusted source of information for Cubans, a platform for the voiceless and a force against censorship. Álvaro Alba is the deputy director of the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. Click here to listen to Radio Marti online.
