A federal judge in Seattle issued a temporary nationwide restraining order
Friday stopping President Trump’s executive order banning citizens of seven countries from entering the United States.
Judge James Robart, who was appointed by former President George Bush in 2003, ruled the executive order would be stopped nationwide, effective immediately.
“The Constitution prevailed today,” Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement after the ruling. “No one is above the law — not even the President.”
“It’s our president’s duty to honor this ruling and I’ll make sure he does,” Ferguson added.
The ruling, made at the request of Washington and Minnesota, is the broadest to date against Trump’s executive order.
Ferguson, a Democrat, filed the lawsuit three days after Trump signed the executive order. The suit argued that the travel ban targets Muslims and violates constitutional rights of immigrants and their families.
The White House pledged action “at the earliest possible time” in a late Friday statement.
The order, issued last Friday, immediately stirred controversy when travelers who were en route to the U.S. when it was signed were detained at airports. Protesters demonstrated at airports across the county last weekend.
CNN reported that Customs and Border Protection held a 9 p.m. call with airlines and said it’s “back to business as usual” in the wake of the judge’s action.