Trump's Latest Attempt at a Travel Ban Blocked in Federal Court

On Tuesday, the White House completed a failed hat trick when a federal judge issued a nationwide injunction on the Trump administration’s third—yes, third—travel ban.

The decision came from Judge Derrick K. Watson, who earlier this year struck down President Trump’s second travel ban attempt, which had attempted to exclude grandparents from its definition of “close family” members. At that time, Judge Watson ruled flatly: “That simply cannot be.”

This latest travel ban, which was set to go into effect this week, slightly altered the initial list of predominantly Muslim nations blocked in the first iterations of the ban. While Sudan was no longer included in the affected countries, Chad, North Korea, and Venezuela had been added. Watson’s order reportedly blocks federal officials from barring susceptible travelers from all the countries in the newest list, except for North Korea and Venezuela.

Watson was clear in his decision.

The White House’s second attempt at a travel ban was initially set to be argued before the Supreme Court. However, when the administration released this latest iteration, essentially nullifying the earlier version, the high court dropped the scheduled hearing.

The Trump administration is widely expected to appeal this new injunction, setting the stage for another Supreme Court showdown in the future.