Trump administration can stop new refugee approvals, appeals court rules 

A federal appeals court Tuesday temporarily reinstated President Trump’s suspension of new refugee admissions nationwide. 

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel agreed to partially lift a judge’s block until it fully resolves the Trump administration’s appeal, but the panel ruled that Department of Homeland Security officials still must permit people into the country that were conditionally accepted into the refugee program before Trump’s suspension.

The three-judge panel is comprised of U.S. Circuit Judge Barry Silverman, an appointee of former President Clinton; U.S. Circuit Judge Bridget Bade, a Trump appointee; and U.S. Circuit Judge Ana de Alba, an appointee of former President Biden. 

The trio’s brief ruling pointed to the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision upholding Trump’s travel ban during his first White House term, when the high court noted federal immigration law “exudes deference” to the president in imposing entry restrictions. 

“The existing briefing schedule remains in effect. The clerk will place this appeal on the next available calendar,” the court’s two-page order reads. 

The appeal came after U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead, a Biden appointee, blocked the president’s executive order late last month, saying Trump’s actions amounted to an “effective nullification of congressional will” in setting up the nation’s refugee admissions program. 

Tuesday’s appeals decision does not, however, address Whitehead’s second preliminary injunction he issued Monday, which expanded his earlier ruling to additionally prevent the administration from blocking federal funding for refugee resettlement partners. 

The Trump administration began appealing that order Tuesday, but the 9th Circuit has not yet had a chance to consider it. 

Melissa Keany, senior supervising attorney at the International Refugee Assistance Project, which filed the lawsuit, celebrated Tuesday’s appeals court ruling. 

“The court affirmed that the government must continue processing and admitting eligible refugees whose lives were upended by President Trump’s refugee ban,” Keany said in a statement. 

“We welcome this continued relief for tens of thousands of refugees who will now have the opportunity to restart their lives in the United States, and look forward to arguing this case in full,” she added.