A sweeping overhaul of immigration protections is back in the spotlight as a House Republican moves to dismantle long-standing safeguards for thousands of migrants, tying his effort to an expanding fraud investigation in Minnesota.
According to Fox News, Rep. Wesley Hunt, a Texas Republican, introduced legislation Tuesday that would terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants from Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, and Somalia.
The proposal comes as federal and state authorities continue to probe alleged widespread fraud within Minnesota’s social services network.
If enacted, the bill would require immigrants from those countries currently living in the United States under refugee protections to leave the country within 180 days.
Hunt framed the measure as a response to what he described as systemic failures in vetting immigrants who receive legal protections to remain in the U.S.
“It’s important that we ensure that those entering our country are properly vetted, and they clearly have not been properly vetted. So what we are trying to do is ensure that we address this, we stop this,” Hunt told Fox News Digital.
The timing of the bill, Hunt said, is directly connected to mounting scrutiny surrounding Minnesota’s Somali community, where federal prosecutors are investigating what could amount to billions of dollars in fraud tied to public assistance programs.
Authorities have already charged multiple individuals in connection with the theft of more than $240 million from the Federal Child Nutrition Program through Feeding Our Future, a Minnesota-based nonprofit. Since then, investigators have widened their focus to include additional state-run programs that may have been exploited.
Childcare providers receiving state funding — many operating within the Somali community — are also under review.
The political fallout from the investigation has been significant. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced he would not seek a third term, citing concerns that his campaign could distract from efforts to protect residents from both criminal activity and political opportunism.
“Every minute that I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity, and the cynics who want to prey on our differences,” Walz said.
Hunt rejected Walz’s explanation and accused the governor of deeper involvement.
“I mean, looking at Tim Walz’s decision not to seek re-election — where there’s smoke, there’s fire. There certainly is more to come out of this situation,” Hunt said. “He was clearly complicit in what was going on. That’s why he’s not seeking reelection, and so there’s a lot of ‘there’ that’s there, and it needs to be exposed, needs to be investigated.”
He added, “Making sure that we revoke these TPS designations is the beginning of cleaning up this mess.”
Hunt said his legislation would also accelerate President Donald Trump’s effort to end TPS for Somali nationals living in Minnesota.
Beyond fraud concerns, Hunt described the bill as part of a broader cultural and national security effort, citing his own military experience in the Middle East.
“As somebody that has lived under Sharia law, somebody that has deployed to the Middle East, this is also a broader conversation about keeping people that hate our country out of here,” Hunt said. “And so what we’re going to do is try to pass legislation that codifies what President Trump is trying to do.”
Hunt is currently running for U.S. Senate in Texas.
