NJ Senators Out in Front on Haiti Earthquake

In the wake of a devastating earthquake that by some accounts has utterly destroyed the infrastructure of Haiti, New Jersey’s two Senators have taken prominent roles in trying to shape American policy toward Haiti and toward Haitian immigrants living in the US.

Senators Frank Lautenberg (D) and Robert Menendez (D) co-signed an open letter to President Obama yesterday afternoon, urging him to grant what is known as Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Haitians now resident (lawfully or not) in the United States. TPS is sometimes granted to immigrants from countries torn by war or natural disaster.

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Eleven other Senators, all Democrats, signed the letter. They include the entire New York and Massachusetts delegations and other prominent Democrats from New England, the Midwest, the Southwest, and Florida.

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32,000 Haitians live in New Jersey, as of the 2000 Census. {snip}