The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and five individuals announced last week that they would join a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington (ACLU) challenging the constitutionality of the most recent travel ban proposed by the Trump administration.
The ACLU asserts that the newestexecutive order, signed by President Donald Trump on March 6, is still a ban targeted at Muslims despite changes made to address concerns raised by judges on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals regarding the first iteration of the executive order.
That order was found unconstitutional.
“Cosmetic changes fail to mask the discriminatory intent that pervades the President’s order,” said ACLU of Washington Legal director Emily Chiang. “The President promised a Muslim Ban and that’s exactly what the Revised Order is.”
The ACLU is representing refugees and asylum seekers in Washington who have been kept from their families despite clearing security screenings.
A judge in Hawaii ruled the newest executive order unconstitutional in a decision released March 15. In his ruling, Judge Derrick K. Watson cited quotes from Trump advisor Stephen Miller and the president himself.
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