The attorney general of Washington state, whose case against President Donald Trump's initial travel ban brought that plan to a halt, said Monday that his office is considering its "next legal steps" concerning the administration's new travel order.
"By rescinding his earlier executive order, President Trump makes one thing perfectly clear: His original travel ban was indefensible _ legally, constitutionally and morally," Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement.
"The president has capitulated on numerous key provisions blocked by our lawsuit, including bans on Green Card holders, visa holders and dual citizens, an indefinite ban on Syrian refugees, and explicit preferences based on religion," he said. "We are carefully reviewing the new executive order to determine its impacts on Washington state and our next legal steps."
After Washington and Minnesota sued against the first travel ban in a Seattle federal court, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart issued a national restraining order on Feb. 3 blocking its enforcement until the constitutionality of the order could be decided. That restraining order was upheld by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after the administration challenged it.
In response to those rulings, Trump said the new executive order would be "tailored" to the "bad" decisions.
The Seattle case is still pending.
