The Department of Justice said Tuesday that it plans to appeal a temporary restraining order issued last week that blocks the government from categorically denying asylum to those who enter the US between official ports of entry.
Tigar’s order, government lawyers argued, “directly undermines the President’s determination that an immediate temporary suspension of entry between ports of entry is necessary to address the ongoing and increasing crisis facing our immigration system.”
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The move comes after President Donald Trump lashed out last week at Tigar, as well as the 9th Circuit, and said he would ultimately prevail in the case before the Supreme Court.
The American Civil Liberties Union responded immediately to the government’s request to put the ruling on hold. “We will vigorously oppose the stay request, so that people’s lives are not put in danger,” ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt, a lead lawyer for the challengers, said Tuesday.
When he issued his order on November 19, Tigar said the Trump administration policy barring asylum for immigrants who enter outside legal checkpoints “irreconcilably conflicts” with immigration law and the “expressed intent of Congress.
