The US Supreme Court cancelled an upcoming hearing on the legality of the Trump administration’s Muslim travel ban, one day after the White House introduced a more sweeping, and punitive, measure.
Arguments set for next month were removed from the high court’s calendar on the concerns that the President’s new executive order renders the case “moot.”
Issued on Sunday evening, an updated travel ban—now in its third iteration—adds more countries to the restricted list, and proposes keeping the prohibitions in place indefinitely.
Trump’s prior orders targeted only Muslim-majority nations, and only suspended travel for 90 to 120 days. Months of ongoing disputes over the constitutionality of the executive order were set to culminate before the Supreme Court in October.
Perhaps with an eye on the upcoming legal fight, the latest version of the administration’s travel ban includes two non-Muslim nations: North Korea and Venezuela—countries seemingly included due to their deteriorating relations with Washington, instead of a security threat posed by its citizens.
Dropped from the original version was the country of Sudan. It’s now replaced by Chad—a decision that has left foreign policy experts scratching their heads.
The updated order is more detailed than earlier versions, imposing varying degrees of restrictions in each country, as opposed to blanket bans on travel.
For example, those traveling from Iran on student and exchange visas could still be allowed to make their trip following enhanced screening and vetting measures. The Venezuelan restrictions apply only to government officials and their immediate families. Chad Yemen, Libya, and Somalia also have differing levels of prohibitions. The strongest restrictions—blanket bans on all travel—apply only to North Korea and Syria.
“As President, I must act to protect the security and interests of the United States and its people,” Trump states in the executive order. It alleges the listed countries “have a significant terrorist presence within their territory.” They also have inadequate vetting procedures, the administration claims, making it difficult for US immigration authorities to verify travelers’ identities.
With the inclusion of North Korea and Venezuela, the White House hopes to evade charges that the order is discriminatory, which was the basis of legal challenges on the travel ban.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), however, believes the administration can’t hide its true intentions.
“The fact that Trump has added North Korea—with few visitors to the U.S.—and a few government officials from Venezuela doesn’t obfuscate the real fact that the administration’s order is still a Muslim ban,” said ACLU Director Anthony Romero in a statement,
“President Trump’s original sin of targeting Muslims cannot be cured by throwing other countries onto his enemies list,” Romero added.
The new order is set to take effect October 18, barring any subsequent legal actions.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked parties involved in the ongoing legal fight over the previous travel ban to file a brief by October 5 detailing how the new order will affect the case.
