Trump Deports Miami Doral Venezuelans. Is He Lying Again?

Post # 369, Bob McKnight's Florida Commentary

Venezuelans, Given Temporary Status by Biden, Supported Trump, and are Now Being Deported Home.

Political pundits watched Miami-Dade County Latin voters in the 2024 election very carefully. With its large Hispanic population, many expected those votes would go Democratic again. They did not--they voted for Trump. Donald Trump was almost militant about attacking immigrants, emphasizing that many were in America illegally. He dishonestly attributed many crimes to immigrants to foster outrage among his base. His lies were plentiful. Florida is a large multi-cultural state with large concentrations of immigrants in South and Southwest Florida. Those communities are often cited as the future picture of America. Hispanics there said opportunities for existing immigrants were more important than admitting more immigrants, without visas.

However, in Doral, a relatively new community in West Miami, the issue of immigrants is more complicated. Many Venezuelans live in Doral and are contributing positively to the community. There are 900,000 Venezuelans living in America and approximately 1/3 of those living in Florida hold Temporary Protected Status ("TPS"). There is no term for TPS, which has become the heart of the problem in Doral. There are sympathies for the Venezuelans as many have fled their country's vicious dictator Nicholas Maduro. In Miami Doral, most Venezuelans are employed and are hardworking taxpayers. They voted for Trump in 2024 and felt his animus toward Venezuelans was directed at the gangs of immigrants, and not them. They never thought Trump and fellow Miamian Secretary of State Marco Rubio would lie about who is in a gang and who is not. They cited an arcane statute to attempt to overcome a court ruling denying Trump's deportation flights.

Trump needs to feed his base raw political meat and needs high visibility for his deportations.

Venezuelans in Doral further felt with their support of Trump in the election, residency would become permanent and they would not be deported in 2025. No permanent residency solutions were reported by the 3 Miami members of Congress, all Hispanic, before or after the election.

But new Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem is revoking TPS for the Venezuelans and is processing extraditions back to Venezuela. South Florida's Republican politicians, all of whom supported Trump, have written to him and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to make an exception for TPS becoming permanent in this instance. The White House and Rubio are silent on helping their fellow Floridians.

Trump said he has gotten Madura to accept the Venezuelan so that Miami-Doral Floridians will suffer deportation as a result.