USA Federal judge James Robart on Friday temporary issued a restraining order on the ban of visitors from seven Muslim countries entering the United States, saying it is unconstitutional.
Mr Trump signed this executive order on 27 January, banning citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries – Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen – from the US. He temporarily suspended America’s refugee programme, barring Syrian refugees from the country indefinitely.
The state department invalidated some 60,000 visas from citizens of those seven countries, travellers were held at airports around the US and thousands more were not allowed to board planes to the US.
Blocking the Ban
The challenge in Seattle was brought by the state of Washington and later joined by the state of Minnesota, according to BBC.
The judge ruled on Friday that these states have legal standing to sue, which could help Democratic attorneys general take on Trump in court on issues beyond immigration.
Washington’s case was based on claims that the state had suffered harm from the travel ban, for example students and faculty at state-funded universities being stranded overseas. Amazon.com and Expedia both based in Washington state, had supported the lawsuit, asserting that the travel restrictions harmed their businesses.
In granting a temporary restraining order, the judge essentially related that the plaintiffs (the states of Washington and Minnesota):
- were likely to succeed at a later date
- that people in those states could suffer irreparable harm if the ban continued
- that blocking the President’s order was in the public interest.
In other words, he decided there was more harm letting the ban continue than there was blocking it until the full case could be heard.
As the CNN reports, Seattle attorney general, Bob Ferguson reacted to the report, saying: “This decision shuts down the executive order right now. No one is above the law, not even the President.”
White House Reaction
The White House has condemned the ruling as airlines around the world and airports in the US continue implementing it. Trump’s administration has already launched an “emergency stay” against Robart’s ruling.
According to the Telegraph UK, the White House issued a statement late Friday night announcing the justice department would seek an emergency stay to reinstate the ban.
The statement called the ruling “outrageous” but, apparently in defence to judicial independence, the word was removed.
