Here is a snippet of an opinion by a US District Court Judge (Massachusetts) denying a motion to extend a TRO against Trump et al.:
Quote:
The Fifth Amendment protects aliens within the United States from “invidious discrimination by the Federal Government.” Plyler v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202, 210 (1982) (quoting Mathews v. Diaz, 426 U.S. 67, 77); see also Yick Wo v. Hopkins, Case 1:17-cv-10154-NMG Document 69 Filed 02/03/17 Page 8 of 21 -9- 118 U.S. 356, 369, (1886) (“[Equal Protection is] universal in [its] application, to all persons within the territorial jurisdiction, without regard to any differences of race, of color, or of nationality.”). There is a distinction, however, between the constitutional rights enjoyed by aliens who have entered the United States and those who are outside of it. See Zadvydas v. Davis, 533 U.S. 678, 693 (2001).
The decision to prevent aliens from entering the country is a “fundamental sovereign attribute” realized through the legislative and executive branches that is “largely immune from judicial control.” Chi Thon Ngo v. I.N.S., 192 F.3d 390, 395 (3d Cir. 1999), amended (Dec. 30, 1999) (quoting Shaughnessy v. United States ex rel. Mezei, 345 U.S. 206, 210 (1953)). Federal classifications based on alien status are evaluated using rational basis review. Mathews v. Diaz, 426 U.S. 67, 83 (1976) (considering whether a law that made distinctions based on alien status was “wholly irrational”); Ruiz-Diaz v. United States, 703 F.3d 483, 486–87 (9th Cir. 2012)(determining that a regulation that treated immigrant religious workers differently than other visa applicants would be evaluated using rational basis review); Narenji v. Civiletti, 617 F.2d 745, 748 (D.C. Cir. 1979) (upholding a regulation issued in response to the Iran hostage crisis that required non-immigrant alien Iranian students to Case 1:17-cv-10154-NMG Document 69 Filed 02/03/17 Page 9 of 21 -10- provide information to Immigration and Naturalization Services Offices).
Rational basis review examines whether the “classification at issue bears some fair relationship to a legitimate public purpose.” Plyler, 457 U.S. at 216. It is “not a license for courts to judge the wisdom, fairness, or logic of legislative choices.” Heller v. Doe by Doe, 509 U.S. 312, 319–20 (1993) (quoting FCC v. Beach Communications, Inc., 508 U.S. 307, 313 (1993)). Under rational basis review, a classification is permissible “if there is any reasonably conceivable state of facts that could provide a rational basis.” Id. (quoting Beach Communications, 508 U.S. at 313).
Plaintiffs contend that the EO discriminates on the basis of religion and was designed to exclude Muslims from the United States. They further allege that it singles out citizens of seven different countries. At oral argument, plaintiffs relied on “astonishing evidence of intent” from President Trump which, in their view, demonstrates that EO was “substantially motivated by improper animus.” See Hunter v. Underwood, 471 U.S. 222, 233 (1985) (holding that a provision in the Alabama Constitution violated equal protection even through it was facially neutral because it was motivated by animus). Defendants responded that the cases examining improper animus involve equal protection claims against states, which may be reviewed with strict Case 1:17-cv-10154-NMG Document 69 Filed 02/03/17 Page 10 of 21 -11- scrutiny, while the federal government classification of nonresident aliens in this case is subject to rational basis review.
Because the EO involves federal government categorizations with respect to non-resident aliens, rational basis review applies. According to the EO, its purpose is “to ensure the proper review and maximum utilization of available resources for the screening of foreign nationals, and to ensure that adequate standards are established to prevent infiltration by foreign terrorists . . . .” Exec. Order 13,769 § 3(c). The EO specifically asserts that permitting aliens from the countries identified in section 217(a) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1187(a)(12), to enter “would be detrimental to the United States.” The order provides a “reasonably conceivable state of facts [which concerns national security and] that could provide a rational basis” for the classification. Heller, 509 U.S. at 319–20. Accordingly, this Court declines to encroach upon the “delicate policy judgment” inherent in immigration decisions. Plyler, 457 U.S. at 225.