From NBC News · Lawrence Hurley · · 2m
Supreme Court clears Trump's Big Bend border wall
The justices blocked an injunction stopping construction in remote Texas, saying the administration is extremely likely to prevail.
In brief
The justices blocked an injunction stopping construction in remote Texas, saying the administration is extremely likely to prevail. The Supreme Court allowed President Trump to build a border wall section in Big Bend, Texas, overruling a federal judge's injunction that had blocked construction. Originally reported by…
Supreme Court backs Trump wall
The Supreme Court on Monday allowed President Donald Trump to move forward with border wall construction in the remote Big Bend region of southwest Texas.
Judge's injunction blocked
The justices blocked an injunction imposed by a federal judge in Texas that had blocked construction while litigation continues over the project.
Court's reasoning
In a five-page unsigned decision, the court said the federal judge had no authority to impose the injunction and that the Trump administration was extremely likely to prevail on that point.
Border security interest
The court said the government has compelling interests when a challenged policy involves border security, justifying the move forward.
Jackson dissents alone
Of the nine justices, only liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the decision to allow construction to proceed.
The disputed section
The section in question involves three hundred forty-one miles of construction, including Big Bend National Park, based on waivers issued by Kristi Noem and Markwayne Mullin.
Challengers' concerns
Environmental group Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Ruidosa Church, and river guide Danny Miller argued construction would result in permanent alteration of an irreplaceable landscape.
“result in the permanent alteration of an irreplaceable landscape”
Lowest crossing rates
Government data shows Big Bend has the section of the southern border with the lowest number of encounters between federal agents and migrants, contradicting the urgency argument.
Trump's signature policy
Building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border has been one of Trump's signature policies since his first presidential campaign in 2016, part of his hard-line immigration focus.
Broader construction plan
Boosted by Republican-controlled Congress funding, the administration seeks to complete a two thousand mile installation including steel panels, vehicle barriers and new surveillance technology.
The takeaway
The Supreme Court allowed President Trump to build a border wall section in Big Bend, Texas, overruling a federal judge's injunction that had blocked construction.
