President Trump may have sabotaged himself
Feb 6, 2017, 7:03 AM
Most of President’s Trump executive order on immigration was suspended Friday by a federal judge in Seattle.
But to get a permanent injunction Washington State’s Attorney General, Bob Ferguson, will have to prove that the president tried to discriminate based on religion –– even though his temporary ban never mentions religion.
How will he do it? He’ll use the public statements of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani.
“If one reads our complaint, you will see direct quotes from Donald Trump and Mayor Giuliani. They made no secret of what they wanted to do.”
In fact, on Fox News last week Mayor Giuliani pretty much admitted he was trying to find a legal way to do what on its face would have been illegal.
“When he first announced it, they said Muslin ban. He called me up and he said ‘Put a commission together, show me the right way to do it legally.'”
But the Trump administration is arguing that campaign rhetoric and comments on talk shows shouldn’t matter. Bob Ferguson disagrees.
“That is a frightening argument,” Ferguson said. “Yes, the president has broad authority in issuing executive orders like this, but that does not mean it is a blank check and that no federal judge or no attorney general can look behind the thinking behind that executive order. That is is not the law and frankly, cannot be the law in our country.”
It’s got to be a little butterfly-inducing to take on a president, especially one as confident as Donald Trump. But Mr. Ferguson didn’t seem particularly worried:
“He’s a bully. He can’t take a defeat like a man. What more can you say?”
I’m sure that’ll roll right off.
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