An appeals court decision has allowed the Trump administration to suspend the approval of new refugees while a lawsuit challenging the president’s executive order halting refugee admissions plays out.
The big picture: Existing refugees conditionally approved before President Donald Trump took office will still be processed, but new approvals can be suspended under the ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Driving the news: U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead in Seattle had previously ruled against Trump’s nullification of the congressional law establishing the refugee program.
- President Joe Biden’s administration also acknowledged the president’s discretion to suspend refugee admissions, but emphasized that this power is not limitless, noting the human impact of canceled travel plans and family separations.
- Trump’s order cited strains on cities and communities due to high levels of migration as the reason for suspending the refugee program, affecting an estimated 600,000 individuals in the refugee pipeline worldwide.
