Story perspectives

Biden, Trump, Obama Appointees Block Trump's Asylum Ban

4/25/2026

Summary

Story summary

Appointees from Presidents Biden, Trump and Obama on the panel blocked U.S. President Donald Trump’s order halting asylum applications at the U.S.–Mexico border.
Judge J. Michelle Childs said Immigration and Nationality Act does not give president authority to suspend asylum procedures and said Press secretary Karoline Leavitt was not surprised, adding judges were viewing the case through a lens.
The ruling could prompt an appeal and a Supreme Court review.

History

Historical Context

The 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, signed by President Bill Clinton, expanded executive power and raised annual removal quotas by 100,000, building on the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 that set the legal framework for asylum. In February 2024, Judge J. Michelle Childs and other federal judges blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order curtailing asylum, reaffirming judicial limits on presidential immigration authority.

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Story summary

Appointees from Presidents Biden, Trump and Obama on the panel blocked U.S. President Donald Trump’s order halting asylum applications at the U.S.–Mexico border.
Judge J. Michelle Childs said Immigration and Nationality Act does not give president authority to suspend asylum procedures and said Press secretary Karoline Leavitt was not surprised, adding judges were viewing the case through a lens.
The ruling could prompt an appeal and a Supreme Court review.

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