A US appeals court has blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order suspending asylum claims, which was a key part of his plan to tighten immigration rules at the US southern border.A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that immigration laws allow people to apply for asylum at the border, and the president does not have the authority to override that process.The panel said the Immigration and Nationality Act does not allow the president to remove plaintiffs using “processes of his own making,” suspend their right to seek asylum, or limit the process of hearing anti-torture claims.“The authority to declare a temporary suspension of the entry of specified alien individuals into the United States does not contain implied authority to override the mandatory process imposed by the Immigration and Nationality Act to summarily remove alien individuals,” wrote Judge J. Michelle Childs, nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden.ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt welcomed the decision, saying: “It is essential for those fleeing danger who have been denied even an asylum hearing under the Trump administration’s unlawful and inhumane executive order.”Judge Justin Walker, Trump’s nominee, issued a partial dissent. The case was also heard by Judge Cornelia Bellard, nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama.
