Judge refuses to block Trump’s coronavirus green card freeze

A federal judge in Oregon who previously blocked President Trump’s order to bar immigrants who lacked or could not afford health insurance refused to do the same with regard to Trump’s recent pause on green cards.

The same plaintiffs who got U.S. District Court Judge Michael Simon to issue a temporary injunction last fall sought a similar injunction against the coronavirus-related order Trump issued last week, at least when it comes to children of permanent residents who are likely to turn 21 and lose child status while the new ban is in effect. Simon said he could not do this because Trump’s new order has nothing to do with the original case.

Trump’s latest order placed a 60-day ban on green cards, and the immigrants who brought the class-action lawsuit in the fall claimed that class members who are turning 21 during that time will be deprived of preferential status that would allow their applications to be processed more swiftly.

Simon recognized the plaintiffs’ concern that Trump’s latest order could result in some people having the processing of their applications delayed indefinitely, but said that alone was not enough to block any order.

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