A federal appeals court on Friday delivered two blows to the Trump administration’s immigration policy, ruling against a program to force migrants seeking asylum to wait in Mexico and against a rule severely limiting the number of migrants who were eligible for asylum.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 on Friday to reinstate a block on forcing migrants to wait in Mexico while their asylum cases were pending. The same court also ruled 3-0 to uphold a block on cases of those seeking asylum eligibility at ports of entry.
In the remain-in-Mexico case, the court said it concluded that the policy, known formally as the Migrant Protection protocols, or MPP, “was invalid in its entirety” due to inconsistencies with the law and should be “enjoined in its entirety.”
The court affirms that the provision the Trump administration was relying on does not apply to asylum-seekers.
On the other case, the court recognizes the danger asylum seekers encounter along the border, and that the administration cannot rewrite laws.
About 60,000 immigrants seeking asylum have been placed on hold for more than a year in Mexico betwen Tijuana and San Diego.
An analyst expect the government to appeal the block to the Supreme Court, where the Supreme Court has previously tended to side with the Trump administration, but not entirely.
The decision did not address what happens now to those on hold in Mexico.
The rest of this story is at NBC News.