The Native Iowan

Another fine winter’s morn in Queensland. The skies are slate coloured, the air is chilled, a drizzly rain mutes the world’s noise.

I’m watching the melt-down post Supreme Court ruling per “Temporary Protection Status” of many people now residing in the USA.

It is really a big thing, for more than one reason: First off it is, can be a boon for the homelands of these folks who have sought and received protective status. Bright, ambitious people who fled their homelands can offer a wealth of knowledge and ability. Their departures were felt as will be their return. Secondly, any gaps created by these folks returning to their homes will open up opportunities for those “further down the ladder”. Jobs, vacancies in schools and housing shall all be filled quickly.

There is a lot to be positive about… unless of course your TDS is running high…

The same-old, same-old BS lines come out… who will pick our peaches, babysit our children, sweep our floors…

But the word “Temporary” is important.

For those folks who fled their homelands because of war, pestilence, terror… they should be rejoicing in that their homeland is safe for them to return and rebuild the life they abandoned. Of course, the years involved, change people. Those who were old when they came are older. They may have become content in the bosom of American Exceptionalism.

If such is the case they should or should have sought citizenship.

I spent over ten-years and huge $$s to become an Aussie. Through out the entire process there was no guarantee I would be granted citizenship. My Visa stated clearly that IF/ WHEN I was told to leave Australia I had to comply. I agreed to this clause specifically and every scrap of paper the Gov’t issued reminded me of this fact.

Didn’t matter that I had started a business and bought a house. My original Visa was titled “Investor – Retiree”. To qualify for that Visa I had to have $$$s in the bank ready to invest. I was expected to start a business and pay taxes. And I did.

Eventually that Visa was discontinued and I was given the choice to live under a 5yr revolving Visa that cost big $$. Or… I could apply for citizenship. No assurance, no guarantees… Fill in the forms, pay the fees, jump through the hoops. Wait, and hope for the best.

As a Proud Aussie I shall not disparage the system. It worked for me. I followed the rules and am pleased to be an Aussie. I think changing the system now to please certain interest groups is dumb, wrong, flawed. Anything less than being a law abiding citizen is foolish in my thinking.

So I check the numbers of folks potentially effected by the new Ruling…

Total TPS beneficiaries: ~1,297,635 from 17 countries.
Venezuela: ~605,000
Haiti: ~331,000
El Salvador: ~170,000
Ukraine: ~101,000
Honduras: ~51,000
Others (smaller numbers from countries like Afghanistan, Nepal, etc.): Tens of thousands combined

In a nutshell the ruling stated:
In a 6-3 decision (Mullin v. Doe, June 25, 2026), the Supreme Court ruled:The TPS statute bars judicial review of non-constitutional challenges to the Secretary’s decisions to terminate TPS designations (for Haiti and Syria). Courts cannot block terminations based on claims that the process violated statutory requirements. The Haitian equal-protection (racial discrimination) claim was rejected, as the administration provided a race-neutral reason: broad opposition to longstanding TPS extensions. This allows terminations to proceed.

All I can say is that enforcing the rules, applying the laws makes perfect sense to me.

Call me old fashioned.