Hours before it would have gone into effect, a US judge froze an executive order temporarily banning citizens of six mainly Muslim nations from the United States. President Trump called the ruling "judicial overreach."
Image: picture-alliance/ZUMAPRESS.com/L. Faerberg
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A federal judge in Hawaii froze US President Donald Trump's second executive order temporarily blocking citizens from six predominantly Muslim countries from entering the country.
US District Judge Derrick K. Watson issued an emergency stop that effectively froze the order nationwide.
Watson said Hawaii is posed for likely success that the order violates the US Constitution on the ground of religious discrimination.
An imam at a mosque in Hawaii challenged Trump's order, arguing that it blocked his Syrian mother-in-law from joining his family in the US state, "denying them their right, among other things, to associate with family members overseas on the basis of their religion and national origin."
Wednesday's ruling said sections 2 and 6 of the executive order are "prohibited" from being enforced. Section 2 banned entry of nationals from the six targeted countries for 90 days, while section 6 suspended the US refugee program for 120 days.
Trump responded to the court's ruling by saying the decision was part of "unprecedented judicial overreach." He vowed to challenge the stay, even if it went to the US Supreme Court.The US Justice Department also said it "strongly disagrees" with the court's decision.
In the ruling, Watson cited "questionable evidence supporting the government's national security motivation." Trump has repeatedly cited the threat of terrorism and national security vulnerability as the rationale behind both executive orders.
Hawaii Attorney General Doug Chin argued that the order harms Hawaii by emphasizing its affect on international travel to the stateImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo//M. Garcia
Enforcement 'prohibited'
In January, Trump issued an executive order that targeted seven predominantly Muslim countries, including its regional ally Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The revised order, issued earlier this month, dropped Iraq from the list.
The sudden implementation of the order left thousands stranded, prompting impromptu protests at airports across the United States. After a week, a federal judge in Washington state suspended the order, arguing that it denied legal residents of the US due process.
In February, the State Department said fewer than 60,000 visas had been invalidated by the first executive order.
The executive orders barring travel from several Muslim-majority countries prompted outrage in Europe. In response to the first order, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said battling "terrorism does not in any way justify putting groups of certain people under general suspicion, in this case people of Muslim belief or of a certain origin."
Trump's policy actions since February
Trump brought a new flurry of executive orders, memoranda and bill signings into effect in the last five weeks. Some were alterations of previous attempted policies, such as the travel ban. Here are the highlights.
Image: Reuters/C. Barria
Lucky number six - second time's a charm?
After his first travel ban was slapped down by several courts, Trump issued a revised order banning travel from six Muslim-majority countries. This time, Trump dropped Iraq from a list that included seven blacklisted countries first time around. The new order temporarily suspended the entire US refugee program, but exempted those with visas and who had already been formally accepted as refugees.
Image: Reuters/C. Barria
Turning promises into policy
From February and into March, President Trump further advanced his political objectives through a combination of executive orders, memoranda, memos, and the signing of bills into law. He also used his executive authority to undo guidelines issued under the Obama administration.
Image: Reuters/J. Ernst
Multiple policy-making methods
In February, Trump signed 11 new executive orders (broad ranging directives that help the executive branch manage federal government operations) and issued one memorandum (a more direct executive action aimed at a specific agency) targeting the Department of Labor. The US President also signed five bills sent to his Oval Office desk by Congress, which will now become law.
Image: Reuters/J. Ernst
Kicking off financial de-regulation
President Trump's first February executive order established "core principles" for regulating the financial system and requires the Treasury Department to review and report on key provisions of the Dodd-Frank financial reform act. Republicans had criticized the act, which was implemented in the aftermath of the Great Recession, for strangling financial flexibility and inhibiting economic growth.
Image: Reuters/K. Lamarque
Expanding the power of the criminal justice system
Through a series of three executive orders, Trump followed up on his campaign promise to crack down on what he had described as rampant crime in the US. He ordered Attorney General Jeff Sessions to create a Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety and heralded stronger combating of transnational crime. Trump also called for new federal crime criteria to prevent violence against police.
Image: Getty Images/J. Lott
Changing succession in the Department of Justice
On February 9, Trump signed Executive Order 13775 reversing changes to the Justice Department's line of succession that President Obama had made mere days before leaving office. Trump had already side-stepped Obama's order when he removed and replaced acting Attorney General Sally Yates after she had refused to defend Trump's travel ban.
Image: Getty Images/P. Marovich
Slashing agency regulations
Executive Order 13777, signed February 24, builds off of his previous January 30 order prioritizing massive deregulation across the federal government. The February order introduces Regulatory Reform Officers into federal agencies and creates reform task forces. Together, these bodies will advise on the "repeal, replacement or modification" of regulations perceived as prohibitive or ineffective.
Image: Getty Images/D. McNew
Dismantling environmental protection
Trump began undoing environmental protections on two fronts. Firstly, he issued an executive order directing the Environmental Protection Agency to review a rule that empowers the federal government to protect waterways. Though unlikely to have immediate effects, the order could eventually weaken the 1972 Clean Water Act. Trump also signed a bill invalidating an Obama-era stream protection rule.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Images/S. Helber
Promoting historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs)
Surronded in the Oval Office by leaders from historically black educational institutions, Trump signed Executive Order 13779 in order to "promote excellence and innovation" at HBCUs. Primary goals including increasing private-sector participation in the institutions, broadly improving HBCUs capabilities, improving the relationships between HBCUs and the federal government.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Guerrucci
Striking transgender guidelines
In a two-page letter to US public schoos, the Trump administration revoked a controversial Obama-era federal directive allowing transgender students to use the bathroom of their choosing. The White House jusitified the action through a pending court case, despite the guidelines already being on hold. The letter did not lay out new guidelines, meaning states can choose their policies.
Image: picture-alliance/ZUMAPRESS
Reversing bill stopping mentally-ill people buying guns
On February 28 Trump signed a measure to block an Obama-era regulation that would have prevented about 75,000 people with mental disorders from purchasing firearms. In an effort to curb gun violence, the Obama administration asked the Social Security Administration to disclose information about people with certain mental illnesses to the gun background system.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/K. Krzaczynski
Releases aggressive guidelines on deportation
In the third week of February the Department of Homeland Security released Trump's plans to aggressively enforce deportation policies regardless of the severity of an immigrant's criminal history. The guidelines kicked off a nationwide crackdown on undocumented immigrants.
Image: picture alliance/U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/AP/dpa/C. Reed
Supports women in STEM fields
Trump signed two bills promoting women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). One required NASA to encourage young women to study STEM fields and pursue careers that will help advance science and space exploration. The second required the National Science Foundation to encourage its entrepreneurial programs to recruit and support women to work in the commercial world.
