Trump’s travel ban faces block again
LEGAL HURDLE: Judges cite Trump’s statements against Muslims during the presidential campaign as part of their rulings
HONOLULU: Federal judges halted Donald Trump’s revised executive order to temporarily close US borders to refugees and nationals from six Muslim-majority countries, dealing the president a humiliating defeat.
The rulings trigger a nationwide freeze on enforcement of a ban on entry by nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days.
They also halt a suspension of the US admissions programme.
Trump’s restrictions had been due to go into effect on Thursday.
On Wednesday, US District Judge Derrick Watson ruled that the state 120-day refugee of Hawaii, in its legal challenge, had established a strong likelihood that the ban would cause “irreparable injury” were it to go ahead.
Early on Thursday in Maryland, US District Judge Theodore Chuang issued a similar nationwide injunction on a separate complaint filed by advocacy groups claiming that the amended order discriminates against Muslims.
Chuang ruled that the plaintiffs “are likely to prevail on the merits, that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of injunctive relief and that the balance of the equities and the public interest favour an injunction.”
Trump vowed to fight the “flawed” ruling all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary, describing it as “unprecedented judicial overreach.”
“The law in the Constitution gave the president the power to suspend immigration when he deems it to be in the national interest of our country,” he said on Wednesday in Nashville, Tennessee, adding: “We are going to win.”
However, the court in Honolulu indicated that it would not stay its decision in the event of an appeal, meaning the ban cannot go ahead as planned on Thursday regardless of any action the White House takes.
It was the first court to issue its ruling in a trio of legal challenges against the ban, which had been set to go into effect at midnight.