Today, in Refugee and Immigrant Center for Legal and Educational Services v. Noem, US District Court Judge Randolph Moss issued an important decision blocking Donald Trump's January 20 "invasion" executive proclamation, which sought to foreclose nearly all pathways to legal migration and asylum applications for migrants crossing the southern border. Trump claimed the order is authorized by both federal statutes and the Guarantee Clause of Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution, which states: "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion."
Judge Moss rejects both grounds for the order, in a long and detailed 128-page ruling. Interestingly, however, he rejects the administration's constitutional argument without defining what qualifies as an "invasion." Here is his summary of the decision:
