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A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit on Wednesday stayed pending appeal a lower court order that set aside the U.S. Agency for Global Media’s action placing more than 1,000 employees of Voice of America on administrative leave. (Order.) (NYT.) For background on the litigation, see a prior Roundup.
Judge Jennifer L. Thurston (E.D. Ca.) on Wednesday granted a motion to enforce a preliminary injunction against the U.S. Border Patrol, which she ruled violated the court order in an immigration enforcement operation in the parking lot of a Sacramento Home Depot. The injunction prohibited agents from (i) stopping noncitizens without reasonable suspicion that they are in the country illegally and (ii) making warrantless arrests of noncitizens without probable cause of risk of flight. (Order.) (NYT.)
Judge Mary S. McElroy (D.R.I.) on Tuesday held that the Department of Housing and Urban Development violated the Administrative Procedure Act “through their slapdash imposition of political whims” on a grant program to address homelessness. Judge McElroy vacated and set aside the department’s policy that disqualified grant applicants from jurisdictions that do not align with the Trump administration’s policies on immigration and transgender issues. (NYT.)
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Wednesday in Trump v. Barbara, a case challenging the legality of President Trump’s executive order limiting birthright citizenship. The president attended part of the hearing in person. (WSJ.) Chris Geidner analyzed key moments from oral arguments. (Law Dork.) Steve Vladeck argued that the government will likely lose the case, but the Supreme Court’s previous ruling blocking district court nationwide injunctions could lead the government to stop appealing lower court decisions. (NYT.)
Republican leaders announced on Wednesday a two-part plan to fund the Department of Homeland Security. First, the House will vote on a bill that passed the Senate last week that would fund DHS except for ICE and Border Patrol. Second, Republican lawmakers will seek to fund immigration enforcement through budget reconciliation, a process which only requires a simple majority in the Senate. (WSJ.) (NYT.)
The Trump administration on Wednesday removed Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, from the sanctions list of the U.S. Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control. The decision allows Americans to do business with her without facing civil or criminal penalties. (WSJ.)
More than 100 international law experts signed a letter expressing concerns that the U.S. military’s actions in Iran constitute serious violations of international law. (Just Security.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Blanche v. Perlmutter: The government filed an emergency application on October 27 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court interlocutory injunction that temporarily reinstated Shira Perlmutter to her role as Register of Copyrights while litigation over her removal continues. Chief Justice Roberts formally set a deadline of November 10 for a response to the application. Perlmutter submitted a response on November 10. Blanche submitted a reply on November 12. The Court deferred the application for stay on November 28 pending the Court’s decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook.
Trump v. Cook: The government filed an emergency application on September 18 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a preliminary injunction issued by a district court that blocked President Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Cook filed an opposition to the request on the same day. The Chief Justice formally set a deadline of September 25 for a response to the application. Cook filed a response on September 25. On October 1, the Court deferred action on the stay application pending oral argument in January 2026 and established a supplemental briefing schedule. Additional amicus briefs were filed on October 29. Both sides filed supplemental briefs on November 19 and the Court heard oral argument on Jan. 21, 2026.
Noem v. Doe: The government filed an application on February 26 requesting the Supreme Court stay pending appeal of a preliminary injunction issued by a district court preliminarily enjoining Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem from terminating temporary protected status designation for Syria. The government asked the Court to construe the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment and grant the petition. On March 16, the Court consolidated the case with a challenge to the Department of Homeland Security’s termination of Temporary Protected Status designations for Haiti and granted certiorari before judgment of the consolidated cases while deferring action on the government’s request for a stay.
Trump v. Miot: The government filed an application on March 11 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a lower court order postponing then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s decision to terminate temporary protected status designation for Haiti. The government also asked the Court to treat the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment and grant the petition. On March 16, the Court consolidated the case with Noem v. Doe.