HUGE: Judge Rules on Major Trump Initiative

A federal judge in Boston has delivered a significant victory to the Trump administration by lifting the last judicial block on ending Temporary Protected Status for more than 5,000 Ethiopians living in the United States. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy cleared the way for the Department of Homeland Security to terminate the protections.

The decision follows a June Supreme Court ruling that limited lower courts’ ability to interfere with DHS decisions ending TPS designations. That 6-3 decision had already allowed the administration to end similar protections for migrants from Haiti and Syria.

DHS General Counsel James Percival celebrated the outcome, writing, “All TPS terminations are in effect!” Temporary Protected Status allows foreign nationals from designated countries to remain in the United States and work temporarily when their home nations face conflict or disasters.

🚨 BREAKING: A federal judge has just LIFTED the FINAL block on Trump’s termination of TPS for third world illegals, giving the green light to deport ETHIOPIANS

MAJOR WIN! 🔥

These people invaded our country EN MASSE, as captured by @AliBradleyTV, and they’re FINALLY on the… pic.twitter.com/Pa7DWaftEn

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) August 18, 2026

The Biden administration granted TPS to eligible Ethiopians in 2022, citing armed conflict and humanitarian conditions. DHS later determined those conditions no longer justified blanket protection and moved to terminate the status.

Murphy had initially blocked the termination in April, criticizing DHS procedures and calling the explanation “pretextual.” After the Supreme Court ruling, he reconsidered remaining legal arguments, including a claim that only the attorney general — not DHS — held authority to end TPS designations under the 1990 law.

Murphy rejected that argument, consistent with other judges handling similar challenges involving South Sudan, Myanmar, and Somalia. He dismissed the remaining claims that had blocked the termination while allowing a separate constitutional challenge alleging racial or national-origin bias to continue.

The practical result is that the administration can now proceed with ending the Ethiopian TPS designation. Officials maintain that Temporary Protected Status was never intended to become a permanent immigration pathway. The ruling adds to a series of courtroom successes for the Trump administration’s efforts to scale back expanded humanitarian programs.