The Trump administration says that lower courts’ unfavorable decisions cast doubts on president’s authority to take decisions concerning national security.
Trump administration approached the Supreme Court on Thursday to reinstate the proposed travel ban. With this, the president is hoping to reverse the decisions of the lower courts.
In his young presidency, Trump has asked the land’s highest court to put in action a temporary ban on foreigners traveling from a selected six countries; all of which are predominantly Muslim nations.
“We have asked the Supreme Court to hear this important case and are confident that President Trump’s executive order is well within his lawful authority to keep the nation safe and protect our communities from terrorism,” Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said, Hindustan Times reported.
“The president is not required to admit people from countries that sponsor or shelter terrorism, until he determines that they can be properly vetted and do not pose a security risk to the United States.”
However, so far, the courts have been unconvinced. They have maintained that the ban on the shortlisted countries – Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen – looked more as president’s way of implementing his poll promise of limiting Muslims in the country. According to the lower courts, Trump’s executive order is for anything but national security.
Nonetheless, the Trump administration has put the onus back on the judiciary by posing questions on the president’s authority to take decisions to safeguard the homeland. “The court’s decision creates uncertainty about the president’s authority to meet those threats as the Constitution and acts of Congress empower and obligate him to do,” the government’s filing read.
Trump issued the executive order in January and asked for a 90 days temporary ban on travelers from seven countries. Upon court orders to block the ban, the president modified its initial executive order and removed one country, Iraq, from its list in March. But, that did not help to win over the courts. Finally, the government has dragged the issue to the Supreme Court.