The Trump administration has hit another court challenge to an immigration-related executive order. On Tuesday, a district court judge in California issued a preliminary injunction against last month’s order from the White House that so-called sanctuary cities—those localities that choose to harbor illegal immigrants and not report those aliens to immigration authorities—have certain federal grants withheld.
The Obama-appointed judge, William Orrick, said in his decision, “Federal funding that bears no meaningful relationship to immigration enforcement cannot be threatened merely because a jurisdiction chooses an immigration enforcement strategy of which the president disapproves.” For now, at least, the administration will be unable to carry through with its plans to withhold funds—at least, if and until the ruling is overturned.
The Administration Responds
White House chief of staff Reince Priebus said the decision was an example of the “9th Circuit going bananas.” (Orrick sits on a district court that falls within the region covered by the 9th Circuit appellate court.)
“The idea that an agency can’t put in some reasonable restriction on how some of these moneys are spent is something that will be overturned eventually, and we will win at the Supreme Court level at some point,” Priebus told reporters Tuesday.
The Justice Department is not commenting on if and when the administration will appeal Orrick’s ruling. A Justice spokesman pointed me to the fact that the order upholds the federal government’s “ability to use lawful means to enforce existing conditions of federal grants.”
“The Department of Justice previously stated to the Court, and reiterates now, that it will follow the law with respect to regulation of sanctuary jurisdictions,” said spokesman Ian Prior. “Further, the order does not purport to enjoin the Department’s independent legal authority to enforce the requirements of federal law applicable to communities that violate federal immigration law or federal grant conditions.”
Update: The White House released a statement late Tuesday night blasting the decision.
“Today, the rule of law suffered another blow, as an unelected judge unilaterally rewrote immigration policy for our Nation,” reads the statement in part. “This case is yet one more example of egregious overreach by a single, unelected district judge. Today’s ruling undermines faith in our legal system and raises serious questions about circuit shopping. But we are confident we will ultimately prevail in the Supreme Court, just as we will prevail in our lawful efforts to impose immigration restrictions necessary to keep terrorists out of the United States.”
Strange New Respect From Lindsey Graham
My colleague John McCormack reported from Capitol Hill Tuesday that several Republican senators don’t appear concerned about the president’s recently announced retaliatory tariff on lumber imports from Canada. The White House had announced plans Monday to institute a 24-percent tax on softwood lumber coming from our neighbors to the north. Some Senate Republicans, it seems, are even enthusiastic about the idea.
Lindsey Graham, who dined with the president alongside fellow Trump critic John McCain at the White House Monday night, appears to be on board. Here’s more from McCormack:
Graham and McCain aren’t shy about publicly criticizing Trump, though that’s chiefly been on foreign policy and national-security issues. Their willingness to give Trump a pass on the tariff is notable.
More Flynn Fallout
The congressional investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn and his suspect interactions with foreign officials before taking office continues. A retired lieutenant general, Flynn accepted around $34,000 to deliver a speech in Moscow in 2015, one year after he was fired as the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency.
But Flynn did not apparently disclose these funds in his security clearance application in January. Nor did he register with the State Department as a foreign agent during his time between his service at DIA and his brief tenure in the Trump White House. He has since registered as a foreign agent.
House Oversight committee chairman and Republican Jason Chaffetz told reporters Tuesday that he has seen “no information, or no data, to support the notion that General Flynn complied with the law.” The Utah Republican, who recently announced he would not seek reelection in 2018, said Flynn was supposed to alert the State Department and the U.S. Army and “receive permission” before his 2015 trip to Russia.
Here’s more from our own Jenna Lifhits:
Song of the Day
“When I Come Around,” Green Day.
