In what is now yesterday’s good news we took note of the OMB directive ordering federal agencies temporarily to block disbursement of grants and loans — other than for Social Security, Medicare and other programs providing direct aid to individuals. The relevant OMB memo is posted here.
Now comes today’s bad news. Judge Loren AliKhan has promulgated some kind of equitable relief blocking the Trump administration from implementing the order for the time being. The news accounts don’t link to a memorandum or order. Politico’s story quotes the judge: “I think there is the specter of irreparable harm.”
Well, yeah. The judge should know.
Irreparable harm may be one factor supporting equitable relief, but that by itself doesn’t cut it and Judge AliKhan’s specter is something less than a finding. This preliminary order is to expire on February 3 at 5:00 p.m. She will undoubtedly have more to say before that time. The specter of Judge AliKhan itself portends irreparable harm.
Politico points out that the judge is a Biden appointee. The specter of Joe Biden is haunting the United States. Or as Marx and Engels put it in The Communist Manifesto: “A specter is haunting Europe — the specter of communism.” For “Europe” substitute or add “the United States.”
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