- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
- Click here to share on LinkedIn (Opens in a new window)
- Click to email a friend (Opens in a new window)
Washington (CNN) - The Trump administration will not grant a state of temporary protection (TPS), a form of humanitarian aid, to Bahamians affected by Hurricane Dorian, an administration official said.
The source did not say when the decision was made, but President Donald Trump seemed to disagree with one of his senior officials on Monday about whether temporary protections would be granted after Dorian.
Administration officials finally decided that TPS was not an option for Bahamians due to established legal obstacles, the time it would take to provide help, and the number of people who would be eligible, according to the official. The TPS applies to people who would face extreme difficulties if they are forced to return to their lands devastated by armed conflict or natural disasters, therefore, protections are limited to people already in the United States. Bahamians who have not yet arrived in the United States probably would not benefit from the protections.
LOOK : Hundreds of volunteers arrive in the Bahamas and evacuations continue
CNN contacted the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of State, which is one of those who generally participate in the consultation, for comments. The State Department referred the questions to DHS, which has not yet responded.
In the past, some countries affected by hurricanes have been designated for TPS. In the late 1990s, for example, Honduras and Nicaragua were designated for TPS after Hurricane Mitch. And more recently, Nepal was designated for TPS in 2015 after an earthquake that killed more than 8,000 people there. The Trump administration has worked to end TPS in many of the countries with protection, but the courts have so far blocked those efforts.
During a press conference at the White House on Monday, the interim commissioner of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Mark Morgan, said it would be "appropriate" to extend the TPS to Bahamians. "There has been no formal TPS concession," he said. "I think it would be appropriate to have that circumstance."
READ : Dozens of evacuees from the Bahamas were ordered to get off a ferry going to the US.
Soon after, Trump seemed to dismiss the idea when asked if he was prepared to offer TPS. "We are talking to many different people about that," the president said, noting that parts of the United States are also recovering from the hurricane, even though the damage was not as serious as feared.
“I don't want to allow people who were not supposed to be in the Bahamas to go to the United States, including some very bad people and some very bad gang members and some very, very bad drug dealers. So we are going to be very, very strong in that, ”said Trump, who pointed out that“ proper documentation ”was needed.
There are a set of document requirements that Bahamians must meet to enter the US, such as having a valid passport, according to Customs and Border Protection.
In a letter last week, Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott of Florida asked Trump to suspend certain visa requirements for Bahamians who have relatives in the United States. Rubio said Monday that storm survivors were already being evacuated to the United States without being required to show visas after coordinating with the authorities.
READ : “They are fighting for water to bathe. Water to drink". Evacuees describe the devastation in Bahamas after Dorian
Morgan, the acting CBP chief, told CNN on Tuesday that people trying to enter the U.S. After fleeing the Bahamas, they will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
“Those people who arrive in the United States who do not have travel documents… we will apply the discretion on a case-by-case basis. We are not going to reject someone just because they don't have travel documents, ”Morgan told John Berman of CNN on“ New Day. ”
He added that the United States does not want to see a "mass exodus" from the Bahamas.
Catherine Shoichet of CNN contributed to this report.
Bahamas, Hurricane Dorian