U.S. grants Venezuelans temporary residency

The Biden administration on Monday said it will offer temporary protected status to the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who fled economic and political unrest. This is a shift from the Trump administration’s policy and could lead to 320,000 people receiving permission to live and work in the United States for 18 months.

Any additional policy changes? An administration official said the government would also review unilateral sanctions, which began under former President Barack Obama as a way to increase pressure on the Venezuelan government. The official said the country’s leadership has mostly adapted to the blockades and a review would ensure U.S. policies don’t punish the Venezuelan people. The United States and more than 50 other countries tightened pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro after he claimed victory in a 2018 election. More than 5 million people have fled the country.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archive, read Marvin Olasky’s feature on how Venezuelan refugees in Florida describe socialism’s latest failure.