Ohio's Republican Governor Calls Trump's Haitian Deportation Plan a "Mistake" as 300,000 Lose Protected Status

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio told CBS News in a July 27 interview in Columbus that the administration's plan to ramp up arrests and deportations of Haitian migrants is "a mistake," describing it as "a blow to Springfield" and "a blow to the state of Ohio." He pointed to Haitians who filled unfilled jobs and opened businesses in the city, and to conditions in Haiti, which he called "virtual chaos" with "no semblance of government." He said: "Haiti is hell today. So you would be sending people back to hell." More than 300,000 Haitians were set to lose Temporary Protected Status that week after the Supreme Court ruled in late June that the administration could end the designation.

DeWine is a sitting Republican governor of the state where the 2024 campaign's false claims about Haitian immigrants in Springfield originated, and his objection is grounded in labor-market and safety arguments rather than in immigration philosophy. That makes it one of the few on-the-record breaks from within the president's own party on a signature enforcement priority.

DHS told CBS News that "it is closing time," and encouraged people losing status to self-deport in exchange for $2,600 and a flight home. ICE has drawn up plans for a deportation push focused on Haitian migrants. DeWine has not said what, if anything, Ohio will do in response.