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Somali TPS ends after the Supreme Court put such terminations beyond a court's review

About 700 Somali nationals lose protection from removal, and the judge who paused the termination wrote that she found their racial-discrimination claim strong but saw no way around the June ruling.

4 min read2026-08-16
Immigration

The termination of Somali Temporary Protected Status proceeds after a judge lifts her own block1

Temporary Protected Status shields people from removal while conditions in their home country are too dangerous for return. The Department of Homeland Security is ending it for Somalia, which has held the status since 1991.1 On Friday, August 14, U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs of the District of Massachusetts dissolved the administrative stay that had paused the termination.2 She found that the plaintiffs made a “strong case” that the statements behind the termination were racist. But she wrote that after the Supreme Court's June ruling that courts could not review the department's decisions to end protections for Syrian and Haitian migrants, she “cannot discern a path” to their winning on the merits.2 About 700 Somalis lose the status and face removal proceedings unless they can show another lawful basis to stay.23 A judge who called the discrimination claim strong found no ground to halt a termination she was barred from reviewing, and the same bar now stands between the next TPS termination and a court.2

Executive power

The administration takes the White House ballroom fight to the Supreme Court4

Solicitor General D. John Sauer filed an emergency application on August 13 asking the Supreme Court to lift an injunction that blocks above-ground construction of a ballroom at the White House.4 The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued to stop the work and has won twice. A district court issued the injunction, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit affirmed it 2-1 on August 7, holding that the President does not own or control the Executive Residence. Below-ground work was allowed to continue.5 The government argues the project is past “the point of no return” and that only an immediate stay can preserve it. President Trump called the appeals ruling “horrendous, politically motivated, and unlawful.”5 The Chief Justice has ordered the National Trust to respond by noon EDT on August 18.4

National Park Service v. National Trust for Historic Preservation Supreme Court of the United States · No. 26A203
Stage
Emergency application to stay the injunction, up from the D.C. Circuit (No. 26-5123)
Question
Whether the President may keep building above ground on the Executive Residence over a court order
Stakes
Who controls the White House grounds, and whether the ballroom is finished before the courts decide
Flooding

Indiana declares a statewide disaster as the White River sets a record crest6

Governor Mike Braun declared a statewide disaster emergency on August 13 through Executive Order 26-21, directing the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to coordinate the response and sending the Indiana National Guard to Gary, Munster, and Hobart.6 More than 11 inches of rain fell on parts of Indiana and Ohio over the week, and the White River at Anderson crested at 24.9 feet, above a record that had stood since 1913.7 At least three people have died and more than 150,000 lost power as of Saturday afternoon.7 The declaration activates state emergency funds and command, and on Friday Braun asked the President for a federal emergency declaration through FEMA, which would open federal money and crews to the counties the state cannot cover alone.7

Food safety

The FDA raises an egg-Salmonella recall to its highest risk class8

The Food and Drug Administration on August 15 raised a recall of shell eggs to Class I, the rank it reserves for a reasonable probability of serious harm or death.8 The recall covers about 19 million eggs from Midwest Poultry Services, produced at Texas farms between June 6 and July 3 and sold under the Country Morning, Cal-Maine Sunups, Brookshire's, Simple Truth, and Kroger labels.8 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tied 98 infections across 17 states to the outbreak strain, 26 of them hospitalized and none fatal.9 The earliest illnesses began in November 2025, months before the recalled eggs were produced, so the recall narrows the risk without accounting for the whole outbreak.98

Sources

  1. Federal Register · Termination of the Designation of Somalia for Temporary Protected Status
  2. Just the News · Federal judge lifts pause on ending Somali TPS designation, clearing way for deportations
  3. The Hill · Judge lifts Somali TPS stay, clearing DHS to end protections
  4. Supreme Court of the United States · National Park Service v. National Trust for Historic Preservation, No. 26A203 — docket
  5. CNN · Trump asks the Supreme Court to let White House ballroom construction continue
  6. State of Indiana · Gov. Braun declares a statewide disaster emergency and mobilizes the National Guard
  7. NPR · Midwest flooding leaves Indiana seeking federal aid
  8. Time · Eggs recalled for Salmonella upgraded to highest FDA risk level
  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · Salmonella outbreak linked to shell eggs