A federal judge in Seattle has ordered the Trump administration to admit approximately 12,000 refugees whose resettlement was halted by President Trump’s executive order suspending the nation’s refugee admissions program. The ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead, rebuked the administration’s attempt to drastically limit the order’s scope to just 160 individuals.
Judge Whitehead emphasized that the government is not free to defy court order or reinterpret them to suit policy goals. He rejected the Justice Department’s argument that only refugees scheduled to arrive within two weeks of Trump’s Jan. 20 order should be processed, calling it a “hallucination” of the 9th Circuit Court’s ruling.
The refugee program, established by Congress in 1980, allows for legal migration based on war, persecution, or disaster — distinct from the asylum process. Trump’s executive order had frozen funding and stalled the resettlement process, prompting lawsuits from displaced individuals and aid groups who had to lay off staff.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed much of Trump’s order to stand in March but required continued processing for refugees who had already secured “arranged and confirmable” travel before Jan. 20 — a group estimated at 12,000.
Judge Whitehead gave the administration seven days to resume processing and take action to admit eligible refugees, including revalidating expired clearances where needed.
