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Daily Archives: February 5, 2017

Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Immigration Order Nationwide

Fast moving story with more changes to come on Monday, February 6, 2017.

The New York Times – Appeals court declines to quickly reinstate travel ban – “The 9th Circuit ruled that the president’s immigration order will remain suspended, at least through Monday — when both sides have deadlines to present more arguments to a three-judge panel. What ultimately lies ahead is a lengthy legal battle that will play out nationwide. The administration says the order is needed for national security.”

The Washington Post – Constitutional crisis? What happens if Trump decides to ignore a judge’s ruling.

The Hill: “A federal appeals court early Sunday rejected the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) request to restore President Trump’s travel ban on immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco denied the DOJ’s request an emergency stay, pending full consideration of the motion. The court requested a response from attorneys general in Washington state and Minnesota on Sunday and from the administration by Monday afternoon.”

The LA Times – “When President Trump ordered a vast overhaul of immigration law enforcement during his first week in office, he stripped away most restrictions on who should be deported, opening the door for roundups and detentions on a scale not seen in nearly a decade. Up to 8 million people in the country illegally could be considered priorities for deportation, according to calculations by the Los Angeles Times. They were based on interviews with experts who studied the order and two internal documents that signal immigration officials are taking an expansive view of Trump’s directive. Far from targeting only “bad hombres,” as Trump has said repeatedly, his new order allows immigration agents to detain nearly anyone they come in contact with who has crossed the border illegally. People could be booked into custody for using food stamps or if their child receives free school lunches. The deportation targets are a much larger group than those swept up in the travel bans that sowed chaos at airports and seized public attention over the past week. Fewer than 1 million people came to the U.S. over the past decade from the seven countries from which most visitors are temporarily blocked….

CNN opinion, “Trump’s most bone-chilling tweet” – “Here is Trump’s truly jaw-dropping tweet from Saturday morning [February 4, 2017]: “The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!”

The Seattle Times “Trump’s ‘so-called judge’ is highly regarded Republican appointee”

The N.Y. Times, “‘So-Called’ Judge Criticized by Trump Is Known as a Mainstream Republican.”

U.S. District Court – Western District of Washington – Judge James L. Robart – Nominated by President George W. Bush in 2003. Confirmed 99-0 by Senate in 2004.

The Hill – “The Justice Department filed a notice Saturday evening that it would formally appeal a temporary nationwide restraining order issued by a federal judge in Seattle on Friday, which immediately halted Trump’s immigration order.”

Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Immigration Order Nationwide – “U.S. District Judge James Robart issued a nationwide injunction blocking enforcement of President Donald Trump’s recent executive order that banned citizens from seven predominantly Muslim nations from traveling to the United States. Robart, appointed to the Western District of Washington by Geroge W. Bush, ruled in favor of Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who sued over the order last week.” Robart ruled that Washington State had standing to bring the case forward. In his oral ruling, he declared that Washington provided evidence that Trump’s order has immediate harm and that the lawsuit against the order has substantial likelihood of succeeding in challenging the constitutionality of the order.”

Seattle Times – “U.S. District Judge James Robart ruled Friday afternoon in favor of Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who sued this week to invalidate key provisions of Trump’s executive order. Robart granted Ferguson’s request for a temporary restraining order ‘on a nationwide basis,’ prohibiting federal employees from enforcing Trump’s order. The judge rejected arguments from Justice Department attorneys who said the travel ban fell well within the president’s national-security powers. … Meanwhile, a contradictory decision came earlier Friday from a federal judge in Massachusetts, who sided with the Trump administration. U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton ruled that the president had the authority on national-security grounds to bar citizens of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen, according to The Boston Globe. The disparate rulings may eventually be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.” The judge’s order

Pew – The changing face of Congress in 5 charts

“The 115th Congress took office in January and set to work on an agenda that includes confirming President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, addressing illegal immigration and repealing and replacing the 2010 health care law signed by Barack Obama. Republicans now control both chambers of Congress and the White House for the first time since 2007,… Continue Reading

Congressman Gaetz Proposes Legislation to Abolish the EPA

News release, February 2, 2017 – “A Northwest Florida lawmaker wants to do away with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by 2018.  Congressman Matt Gaetz has his eyes set on abolishing the federal program as his first order of business in his new role…” Text of the bill is not yet available – the link is… Continue Reading

Deputy Director positions at most federal agencies unfilled

Politico: “The work at some agencies has slowed because of the lack of deputies…President Donald Trump has so far failed to nominate deputies and other top officials to run the day-to-day operations at most federal agencies, creating a vacuum across the government that has businesses, lobbyists and lawmakers in limbo as they wait to see… Continue Reading

Animal welfare information wiped from USDA website

Washington Post, February 3, 2017:  “The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday abruptly removed inspection reports and other information from its website about the treatment of animals at thousands of research laboratories, zoos, dog breeding operations and other facilities. In a statement, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service cited court rulings and privacy laws for the decision, which… Continue Reading

Establishing Digital Interactive Transparency Act

News release, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) reintroducing the Establishing Digital Interactive Transparency (EDIT) Act. “The EDIT Act will instruct the Library of Congress to open up the legislative process by implementing a track changes style system for Congress.gov. “Americans want accountability and transparency out of their lawmakers in Washington, and as lawmakers, we must work… Continue Reading

FedWeb.com – How America Raises and Spends $4 Trillion per Year

FedWed.com: “As General Counsel at the Senate Finance Committee, I had the good fortune to be present when our Chairman, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, famously said “everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.” One of the great ironies of the Information Age is that the volume of information we receive… Continue Reading

Vast Majority of Americans Say Benefits of Childhood Vaccines Outweigh Risks

Pew – Parents of young children support measles, mumps and rubella vaccine requirements but rate the risks higher, the benefits lower. There are not major partisan divisions on these issues, though. “Most Americans support requiring the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine for public school children in order to protect public health. They see high preventive… Continue Reading