Judge blocks order barring asylum access at border, gives administration two weeks to appeal

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge said Wednesday that an order by Donald Trump suspending asylum access at the southern border was unlawful, throwing into doubt one of the key pillars of the president’s plan to crack down on migration at the southern border. But he put the ruling on hold for two weeks to give the government time to appeal.

In an order Jan. 20, Trump declared that the situation at the southern border constitutes an invasion of America and that he was “suspending the physical entry” of migrants and their ability to seek asylum until he decides it is over.

U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss said his order blocking Trump’s policy will take effect July 16, giving the Trump administration time to appeal.

Moss wrote that neither the Constitution nor immigration law gives the president “an extra-statutory, extra-regulatory regime for repatriating or removing individuals from the United States, without an opportunity to apply for asylum” or other humanitarian protections.