Proclamation 10888, issued by the President on his first day in office, purported to:
"prevent anyone who crosses the southern border of the United States at any place other than a designated port of entry, as well as anyone who enters anywhere else (including at a designated port of entry) without a visa or without extensive medical information, criminal history records, and other background records, from applying for asylum."
Plaintiffs challenged the Proclamation on statutory grounds, alleging that it violates a number of statutes governing the granting or withholding of asylum, and, "most fundamentally," that the President is not authorized to unilaterally reform the Congressionally-structured asylum system.[1]