HUDSON VALLEY- The federal Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday night that they would extend Temporary Protected Status to just under half a million Venezuelan migrants, approximately 60,000 of whom are in the State of New York, who have been living in the country. This designation grants those who crossed the border without legal documentation the right to obtain work permits and to live in the United States without fear of deportation.
Concerns surrounding migrants have grown in New York, with New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul requesting federal assistance to help with the unprecedented number of migrants coming to the city and state. The Hudson Valley has also been impacted, with migrants being located in almost every Hudson Valley county after city shelters reached capacity earlier in the year.
Hudson Valley Congressmen Pat Ryan (D, NY-18) and Congressman Marc Molinaro (R, NY-19) have differing views about the federal government giving Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelan migrants.
“I’ve been pushing President Biden to take charge and take action on the migrant crisis for months,” said Ryan. “Last night, he took a major step forward in granting work authorization to over 60,000 asylum seekers in New York, finally enabling them to do exactly what they came here to do: get to work, build a better life for their families, and contribute to our country.”
Molinaro is not supportive of the decision, writing on social media, “There’s absolutely nothing to celebrate. This will make the crisis worse. Address the root cause. We need the House’s border & immigration reform bill.”
Molinaro is referring to a bill passed by the Republican controlled House of Representatives in May that requires Customs and Border Protection maintain a staff of 22,000 border patrol agents and develop a plan to upgrade existing technology at the border. The measure also requires the Secretary of Homeland Security…
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