With chaos reigning and scores of travelers being held in the nation’s airports in the wake of President Trump’s executive order banning travelers from seven countries, a federal judge issued an injunction barring the government from deporting anyone, reports Politico.
During an emergency hearing Saturday night in Brooklyn, US District Court Judge Ann Donnelly appeared to focus on the timing, and Politico notes that the scope of her ruling is limited, applying to people who were already in transit when the executive order was made. “If they had come in two days ago, we wouldn’t be here, am I right? … These are all people who have been through a vetting process,” she said.
A federal judge in Alexandria, Va., also moved to block the deportation of green card holders being held at Dulles airport, as well as force the government to provide them with lawyers, while another judge in Seattle blocked the deportation of two immigrants being held until a hearing could take place.
The Department of Homeland Security, meanwhile, said that green card holders from the affected nations were granted special exemption Saturday and allowed to enter the country, reports the AP.
For his part, Trump had this to say: “It’s not a Muslim ban, but we were totally prepared. It’s working out very nicely. You see it at the airports, you see it all over.” (Politico, AP)