Trump rule that would block poor immigrants from green cards is struck down by federal judge

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last updated 11 October 2019

Another day, another immigration defeat for President Trump.

On Friday, a federal judge in Manhattan struck down the Trump administration's "public charge" rule, which would've made it harder for immigrants to receive visas if they were deemed likely to rely on public benefits. The promise of the rule had already reportedly led undocumented immigrants to shun their benefits, but has now received a nationwide ban that the Trump administration will probably challenge.

The policy proposal published in the federal record in August would allow immigrant's current or possible reliance on food stamps, Medicaid, or housing aid count against them when getting a green card or visa. Advocacy groups and state attorneys general sued to block it. The judge for the Southern District of New York sided with them on Friday, temporarily blocking the policy from taking effect nationwide and saying it could cause "irreparable harm" if it went into effect now.

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Immigration authorities have long possessed the ability to reject migrants on assumption they'd become a "public charge," but it was first codified into policy by Trump. The public charge resurgence even inspired Acting Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ken Cuccinelli to parody poem at the base of the Statue of Liberty, suggesting it should read "give me your tired, your poor who can stand on their own two feet and who will not become a public charge."

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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