IRLI Statement on White House Travel Ban Expansion

January 31, 2020

Six nations added to list for immigration restrictions

WASHINGTON – The Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) responded today to the announcement of the Trump administration’s expansion of countries subject to a travel ban to the United States based on security concerns. 

“The President is clearly within his authorty to take this action,” said Dale L. Wilcox, IRLI’s executive director of general counsel. “As we have argued in the previous legal challenges to this action, the Constitution empowers the president and Congress in the defense of the nation, not the courts. Activist groups that seek to dictate a shadow national security policy through the judicial branch via lawsuits are acting outside this constitutional separation of powers.”

The White House added Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania to its list of countries under immigration restriction. The current countries under the policy include Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen, as well as Venezuela and North Korea. Chad had been on the list, but was taken off after the administration said the country had made security improvements. 

In March 2018, IRLI submitted a friend-of-the-court brief in Trump v. Hawaii, which challenged the administration’s travel ban. In its brief, IRLI argued that federal courts lack jurisdiction to hear the statutory challenges to the President’s order. IRLI also took issue with the Ninth Circuit’s conclusion that the President exceeded his authority under the Immigration and Naturalization Act, which in fact codifies the President’s inherent, sweeping power to exclude aliens in the national interest.

The Supreme Court subsequently upheld the third version of the travel ban. 

For additional information, contact:

Brian Lonergan • 202-232-5590 • [email protected]