“To be sure, the new executive order covers fewer people than the old one,” Neal Katyal, one of the lawyers working on the case told CNN. While the language of the new order has changed slightly, it’s essentially the same xenophobic garbage as before, dressed in a flashy new suit. And, according to Katyal, it still “suffers from the same constitutional and statutory defects as the previous one.”
Perhaps thinking that the newest version of the same old crap is toothless and more tolerant, the Department of Justice voluntarily dropped its appeal against the federal court in Seattle whose ruling suspended the first order, according to Reuters. Despite the outcry from Democrats and opponents of the new travel ban, this one might be harder to fight.
From the Washington Post:
The Justice Department has asserted that there is “no imminent harm” from the imposition of the new ban, as visa applicants typically have to wait months. To win a temporary restraining order, Hawaii would have to prove there was an immediate need for it.
In the long run, the state probably would try to prove that the executive order violates the establishment clause of the First Amendment in that it intentionally discriminates against Muslims.
Regardless of how narrow the focus is of this new ban, it’s plain to see that Trump still intends to keep his campaign trail promise of banning Muslims from the United States. This new version is simply putting lipstick on the same snuffling, smelly pig.
Oral arguments in the case are set to begin March 15th, a day before the travel ban takes effect.
