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Judge David O. Carter (C.D. Cal.) on Wednesday denied the Justice Department’s application for a temporary restraining order in its lawsuit to compel California to set aside ballots cast by individuals on its list of “likely noncitizens.” Judge Carter found the government was unlikely to succeed on the merits of its Supremacy Clause claim and emphasized that the government’s delay, the unreliability of the list, the risk of disenfranchisement, and the Purcell principle all weighed against relief. (Order.) (Reuters.) The Department of Justice will appeal to the Ninth Circuit, which denied the government emergency relief just three days ago. (Notice of Appeal.) (X.)
Judge Ana C. Reyes (D.D.C.) on Wednesday scheduled a new hearing to address whether President Trump ordered federal agencies to close East Potomac Park for golf course renovations on Nov. 15. (Minute Order.) President Trump announced the closure on Truth Social, stating “[t]he judge has absolutely no right to hold up this very important and beautiful Project.” (Truth Social.) The government notified the court of the impending closure on Wednesday—as required by the court’s Monday injunction—after the court took judicial notice of the post. (Notice.) (Minute Order.) See previous Roundup for background.
Judge Loren L. AliKhan (D.D.C.) on Wednesday granted a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration’s use of $20 million in DHS funds to air campaign-style advertisements, finding the DNC likely to prevail on its claim that DHS and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) violated the APA by spending the funds in contravention of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, the Purpose Statute, and the Anti-Deficiency Act. (Op. & Order.)
Judge Julia E. Kobick (D. Mass.) on Wednesday entered a ten-day administrative stay of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) recent interim final rule cutting the time that refugees have to respond to status terminations from thirty days to ten. (Order.) (Reuters.)
CNN, MS Now, and Politico on Wednesday filed an amended complaint in the District of the District of Columbia alleging that despite the court’s Oct. 13 preliminary injunction restoring their hard passes, the White House continues to exclude them from press-pool roles, including aboard Air Force One, and has signaled it will keep them out of the Oval Office. (Amended Complaint.) (CNBC.)
Civil rights organizations on Wednesday filed a complaint in the Northern District of California seeking an injunction against USCIS and DHS’s “Unlawful Voter Initiative,” which includes the assembly of “likely noncitizen” voter lists, arguing it violates the Civil Rights Act, the Privacy Act, and the APA. (Complaint.)
Nick Bednar argued that the recent district court ruling reinstating AUSA Maureen Comey correctly interprets the scope of the attorney general’s statutory removal authority, but the “constitutional question remains live,” pointing to upcoming oral argument at the Federal Circuit in Jackler v. Department of Justice. (Lawfare.)
Rick Hasen argued that the New York Times’ recent reporting that Democrat Mary Peltola’s campaign recruited third-party candidate Dan Sullivan to divert votes from her Republican opponent of the same name does not have “any bearing at all” on the Justice Department’s suit to delay certification of the Alaska Senate election. (Election Law Blog.)
Steve Vladeck wrote that despite the “collusion” concerns raised by the Supreme Court’s decision not to stay the recent consent judgment obtained by the Department of Justice and Texas, the “justices may have held their fire,” perhaps waiting for a better vehicle. (One First.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Mullin v. Friends of the Ruidosa Church: The government on October 21 asked the Supreme Court to issue a stay pending appeal of a district court preliminary injunction halting government construction of barriers along a portion of the U.S.-Mexico border. The government asked the Court to construe its application as a petition for a writ of certiorari and grant the petition. (Application.) Justice Alito requested a response to the application by 4 p.m. on October 29.