US justices allow strict enforcement of Trump refugee ban

The US Supreme Court is granting the Trump administration’s request to more strictly enforce its ban on refugees, at least until a federal appeals court weighs in.

But the justices are leaving in place a lower court order that makes it easier for travelers from six mostly Muslim countries to enter the US.

The administration had appealed last week’s ruling by US District Judge Derrick Watson that required the government to allow in refugees formally working with a resettlement agency in the United States. Watson also vastly expanded the family relations that refugees and visitors can use to get into the country.

The court this afternoon blocks Watson’s order as it applies to refugees, but not the expanded list of relatives. The justices say the federal appeals court in San Francisco should now consider the appeal. It’s not clear how quickly that will happen.

In the meantime, though, up to 24,000 refugees who already have been assigned to a charity or religious organization in the US will not be able to use that connection to get into the country.

— AP