CALIFORNIA:President Donald Trump's administration on Monday asked the US Supreme Court tolift a court order preventing the government from fully enforcing a new rulethat would curtail asylum applications by immigrants at the US-Mexico border.California-based US District Judge Jon Tigar last month issued a nationwideinjunction blocking the rule, which requires most immigrants who want asylum tofirst seek safe haven in a third country they had traveled through on their wayto the United States.
The SanFrancisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Aug. 16 upheld Tigar'sinjunction but limited it to the nine Western states over which it is hasjurisdiction. Only two of those nine, California and Arizona, are on the borderwith Mexico. That left open the possibility that the rule could be applied inthe two other border states, Texas and New Mexico.
The rule,unveiled on July 15, would bar almost all immigrants from applying for asylumat the southern border. It represents the latest effort by Trump'sadministration to crack down on immigration, a signature issue during hispresidency and his 2020 re-election bid. One of the Republican president's mainobjectives has been to reduce the number of asylum claims primarily by CentralAmerican migrants who have crossed the US-Mexico border in large numbers duringhis presidency.
The rule drewlegal challenges including from a coalition of groups represented by theAmerican Civil Liberties Union. In the administration's request to fullyenforce the rule, US Solicitor General Noel Francisco asked the Supreme Courtto issue a stay blocking the injunction while litigation over the issueproceeds because the judge's order interferes with the government's authorityto establish immigration policy.
Theadministration said the rule screens out asylum claims that are unlikely tosucceed and "deters aliens without a genuine need for asylum from makingthe arduous and potentially dangerous journey from Central America to theUnited States." The Supreme Court last December rebuffed a bid by theadministration to implement a separate policy prohibiting asylum for peoplecrossing the US-Mexican border outside of an official port of entry, withconservative Chief Justice John Roberts joining the four liberal justices indenying the request.- Reuters