Obama Judge Strikes Down Trump Asylum Policies in Scathing Rebuke

by Cristina Laila Jun. 5, 2026 2:00 pm



A federal judge on Friday struck down President Trump’s asylum policies in a scathing rebuke.

US District Judge John McConnell, an Obama appointee, accused President Trump of leaving millions of illegals living in the US in limbo.

The Trump Administration last November suspended asylum cases after two National Guard members were shot by an Afghan man who entered the US under the Biden Regime.

USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow
@USCISJoe
·
Follow

USCIS has halted all asylum decisions until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible. The safety of the American people always comes first.

6:12 PM · Nov 28, 2025

“I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover,” Trump wrote on Truth Social last year.

“Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation,” he said.

Judge McConnell blasted Trump’s “anti-immigrant animus” in his 135-page opinion.

“The Government effectively invites the Court to shut its eyes and ignore the strong evidence of anti-immigrant animus before it,” the judge wrote, according to CNN. “Doing so would require profound naiveté on the Court’s part. Unfortunately for the Government, that is an invitation that this Court will have to decline.”

CNN reported:

A federal judge struck down a series of Trump administration policies targeting asylum seekers and immigrants seeking benefits in a scathing court ruling Friday.

Last year, the administration indefinitely suspended asylum adjudications and froze immigration applications for people who fell under the travel ban, among other measures, leaving millions of immigrants in the United States in legal limbo.

Judge John J. McConnell Jr. acknowledged that uncertainty in his 135-page opinion.

“(T)he Challenged Policies placed the lives of countless individuals on hold – solely by virtue of their countries of birth,” wrote McConnell, a nominee of former President Barack Obama. “Over six months later, many of those individuals remain without work, without legal status, and without any meaningful ability to plan for their futures.”

McConnell went on to lambast what he described as “strong evidence of anti-immigrant animus.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/202...ylum-policies/