Democratic lawmakers seek to restore deportation protections to Afghans in the U.S.

A pair of House Democrats will try to bypass Republican leaders and force a vote to restore Temporary Protected Status to Afghan nationals in the United States by introducing a discharge petition when Congress returns Monday night. Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., and Rep. Sam Liccardo, D-Calif., will file the petition, which would require signatures from 218 members to bring forth legislation to grant Afghans protection from deportation until mid-2029. TPS, created by Congress in 1990, is a Department of Homeland Security program that allows migrants to live and work in the U.S. for up to 18 months if their home countries have been designated as unsafe. The time period can be extended. President Donald Trump’s administration terminated the status for Afghanistan in May 2025, a designation that former President Joe Biden’s administration had granted in 2022. “This administration is returning TPS to its original temporary intent,” then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said at the time. She added that “Afghanistan has had an improved security situation, and its stabilizing economy no longer prevent them from returning to their home country.” While the Trump administration recently planned to deport dozens of Afghan immigrants and asylum-seekers to Pakistan, a federal judge last week temporarily blocked that move. Crow and Liccardo would need all current House Democrats and a handful of Republicans to sign on to their discharge petition to reach the necessary 218 signatures. The pair already introduced a special rule on Oct. 1, allowing them to start collecting signatures as soon as they submit the petition on Monday. “Our Afghan partners put their lives on the line to help protect American servicemembers like me,” Crow, who served as a paratrooper and an Army Ranger in Iraq and Afghanistan, said in a statement. “I’m working to force a vote that will protect Afghans already in the United States because I won’t let our nation leave these brave Afghans behind.” If Crow and Liccardo are successful in reaching the 218-signature threshold, GOP leaders would be forced to bring forward the Afghanistan TPS Act for a floor vote. That bill, which the pair introduced in July, would grant TPS to Afghans until July 2029. The legislation would need a majority vote on the House floor to pass. The bill already has four Republican co-sponsors: Reps. Don Bacon of Nebraska, Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida, Joe Wilson of South Carolina, and Morgan Luttrell of Texas. It also has the backing of Rep. Kevin Kiley, a Republican-turned-independent from California. FOR SUBSCRIBERSBig tasks await as Congress returns after Democratic surge FOR SUBSCRIBERSDemocrats won big on Election Day. But can they agree on AI? FOR SUBSCRIBERSBig tasks await as Congress returns after Democratic surge FOR SUBSCRIBERSDemocrats won big on Election Day. But can they agree on AI? “Thousands of Afghans risked their lives alongside American troops because our country made them a promise: We would not abandon them,” Liccardo said. “Now, we risk sending them back into the hands of the very Taliban forces they helped us fight. This cannot wait until the Democratic majority takes over.” The bill has the backing of more than 50 organizations, including Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Amnesty International USA. Once rare, discharge petitions have been successful several times in the 119th Congress as a small number of Republicans have bucked party leadership to join Democrats in getting measures to the floor. In April, the House voted to reinstate temporary protection for Haitian immigrants after a few Republicans joined with Democrats on that discharge petition. The legislation passed 224-204, with 10 Republicans joining all Democrats in support. While the White House had vowed that Trump would veto the bill, Senate Republicans blocked the legislation from going to his desk. Other successful discharge petitions have included votes on aid to Ukraine, extending Affordable Care Act subsidies and the Epstein Files Transparency Act put forth by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. The House is scheduled to be in town this week and next before a Thanksgiving recess.