Trumplaw: Three decisions

After falling for the blatant Schumination hoax, I want to note without further comment three significant appellate court decisions ruling on Trump administration policies. I link to stories on the decisions followed by links to the slip opinions of the decisions themselves.

1. “Appeals court temporarily blocks Trump administration’s ‘Remain-in-Mexico’ policy.”

A federal appeals court on Friday slapped a temporary halt on the Remain-in-Mexico policy — one of the most effective Trump administration policies in halting last year’s migrant crisis — dealing a significant blow to the administration’s efforts to control the flow of migrants claiming asylum at the southern border.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled in a 2-1 vote to put a hold on the policy — formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP). In a separate ruling Friday, the same court also blocked an administration policy that prevents immigrants who crossed the border illegally from then claiming asylum in the U.S.

Innovation Law Lab v. Wolf, No. 19-15716 (9th Cir. Feb. 28, 2020).

2. “Court hands Trump win in sanctuary city fight, says administration can deny grant money.”

A federal appeals court on Wednesday handed a major win to the Trump administration in its fight against “sanctuary” jurisdictions, ruling that it can deny grant money to states that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York overturned a lower court ruling that stopped the administration’s 2017 move to withhold grant money from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, which dispenses over $250 million a year to state and local criminal justice efforts.

New York v. Barr, Nos. 19‐267(L); 19‐275(con), (2nd Cir. Feb, 26, 2020).

3. “Trump wins appeal to block McGahn testimony.”

President Donald Trump scored a major legal victory on Friday when a federal appeals court panel ruled former White House counsel Don McGahn can defy a congressional subpoena for his testimony.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit’s opinion overturned a lower court decision requiring McGahn’s testimony and told the judge presiding over the case to dismiss it outright. The ruling is a blow to House Democrats’ attempts to break the Trump administration’s intransigent stance that it can block Congress from talking to witnesses. McGahn was a key source of information for Robert Mueller and Democrats have been angling to secure an interview to find out what he told the special counsel.

Committee on the Judiciary v. McGahn, No. 1:19-cv-02379 (D.C. Cir Feb. 28, 2020).

As punishment for my falling for the Schumer hoax, I will spend the rest of the day reading these decisions and writing up notes on them for publication tomorrow morning. I’m not sure the punishment fits the crime, but let it be.

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