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Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I am beginning a series of Senators who are speaking about Haiti and TPS.

The Haitian community is woven into the fabric of our great American family, but Donald Trump is trying to tear it apart by terminating Haiti's temporary protected status.

As someone who takes great pride in representing the State that is home to the largest Haitian population in the country, I know just how important the Haitian community is to the American economy, to culture, to society.

But, unfortunately, Donald Trump clearly doesn't. Trump has vilified Haitians with his bigoted attacks and stereotypes, over and over again. Now, Trump is trying to force Haitians who are here legally to return to the dangerous conditions they fled in Haiti.

Let's be clear: Revoking Haitians' temporary protected status will not only hurt them; it hurts our entire country.

In New York, you can't go into a hospital, a nursing home, or a clinic without seeing scores of dedicated healthcare professionals who are fiercely proud of their Haitian heritage. That is true in cities and towns throughout the country.

We have heard warnings that if Trump expels our Haitian TPS holders, it will strain our health system and create a gap in our caregiving workforce that will be difficult to fill.

These people are our friends. They are our neighbors. They take care of the elderly and people with disabilities. They are entrepreneurs and small businessowners. They work hard and pay taxes.

Let's not forget Haitian TPS holders add nearly $6 billion to the U.S. economy each year.

Ending TPS doesn't fix our broken system; it only makes things worse. It is cruel. It is counterproductive. Sending 300,000 people to Haiti with little or no support will further destabilize an already severe humanitarian and security crisis on our country's doorstep.

I urge all of my colleagues to support our legislation and preserve Haitians' TPS status. I will keep fighting for Haitian Americans in New York and beyond--any time, any place.

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