Two Federal Judges Block Muslim Ban 3.0

News Updates

Two judges halted the implementation of Muslim Ban 3.0 on Tuesday afternoon and early Wednesday morning.

• U.S. District Judge Derrick K. Watson (Hawai'i) blocked the implementation of the ban on the 6 Muslim-majority countries on Tuesday afternoon. He ruled that Trump exceeded the authority Congress had given him in immigration law.

• U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang (Maryland) issued a second halt on the ban and went further than Waston by saying the order was an unconstitutional Muslim ban. He cited the President's own words and Tweets as evidence of his intent.

Sample of Media Coverage (Reporters covering the story from different angles)

• Washington Post (by Matt Zapotosky, National Security Reporter)
• New York Times (by Vivian Yee, Immigration Reporter)
• CNN (by Ariane de Vogue, Supreme Court Reporter)
• POLITICO (by Josh Gerstein, White House Reporter)
• HuffPost (by Willa Frej, international and refugee issues reporter)

Top-Line Frames

Below are some top frames that can be reiterated and reinforced in interviews, social media posts, organizational statements on other media opportunities: 

• Constitutional Protection: The freedom to exist without fear of government persecution is enshrined in our Constitution. No one should be discriminated against on the basis of how they look or how they choose to pray. We are thankful two judges have upheld this core freedom enshrined in our constitution. 
• More of the Same: the third iteration of the Muslim ban has been blocked just like 2.0 and 1.0. This yet another iteration of the Muslim ban, which the courts have rejected just like before. 
• Emphasize intent: emphasize that the Trump administration began with a discriminatory Muslim ban, and that further iterations still share the original intent of hurting minority communities and communities of color. This can be taken back further to Trump's comments as candidate, which were less veiled in their bigotry against minority groups.
• Reckless and Reality TV Show President: it works to our advantage to paint the Muslim Ban 3.0 as part of a failed presidency. Public opinion polling shows that many Americans believe Trump is a reckless leader. Emphasizing this point - pointing to his fitness as a leader, the inherent lack of responsibility, and the recklessness of his actions - will further drive home this divide. DHS is withholding information on expansion and potential new countries has the feel of a reality TV show - creating that analogy ("waiting to see which country gets voted off the island") reinforces the narrative of Trump as a reality TV star who is too reckless and unfit to be President.
• Unity: We are stronger when we stand together. Americans of all background came together when the Muslim Ban was first announced to protest at airports across the country. Since then, the American public has consistently resisted every iteration of the Muslim Ban. We are stronger when we come together as Americans and weaker when we let fear and lack of understanding come between us.
• Threats abroad vs. ignorance at home: while President Trump looks for acts of violence coming from abroad, he has yet to tackle security threats from white supremacy groups within the United States. Talking about the contrast between his response to London (which was  the impetus behind this new, expanded ban) and his lack of response to Charlottesville will illustrate the hypocrisy of Trump's desire to "keep our country safe," looking for bogeymen abroad (particularly with countries with no history of terrorist attacks) while ignoring the very real public safety issues that impact us domestically in the form of white nationalist and supremacist groups.

Muslim Ban 3.0 General Talking Points

Many thanks to a number of organizations and advocates who worked together to draft messaging when rumors of an expansion were first floated a few weeks ago. You can find those talking points below.

• The President continues to pursue racist and discriminatory policies. The President has consistently proposed policies that embody the ugly, discriminatory rhetoric of his campaign trail. The President began his administration by excluding Muslims from the United States and is now expanding that to other immigrant communities that he has expressed deep-seated prejudice towards. His bias, bigotry, and discrimination continue to seep into his policies in violation of the Constitution, disrespecting our country’s history, laws, and values.
• We already have an immigration system and the President cannot abuse his authority to try to change it. The United States has an immigration system that was created by Congress. The President cannot change or usurp those laws simply by creating a narrative of fear and sowing divisions in our country. The laws exist for a reason and went through a deliberate and lengthy legislative process in Congress. The President cannot use fear as an excuse to sidestep those laws and create his own system. Dividing our country on the basis of fear makes us weak. Unity, and a belief in the laws and systems put in place by our elected representatives, is what makes us strong.
• Contrary to the fear that the President is trying to stoke, immigrants, refugees, Muslims, and communities of color contribute to our community safety, strength, and overall well-being. There is no evidence that religious beliefs, national origin, race, or ethnicity are predictors of violence. Entire communities cannot be eliminated from our immigration system based solely on fear. This expansion of the Muslim ban is another attempt by the President Trump to stereotype communities of color and perpetuate the idea that immigrants, refugees, Muslims, and communities of color are dangerous and suspicious. It is yet another attempt by a politician seeking to divide people in order to maintain power, but the majority of Americans reject the premise of division and understand that our power as participants in a democracy lies in our ability to unite on the principle that everyone deserves dignity, fairness, and respect.
• We stand united across communities in airports, in marches, in our neighborhoods, and in the courts. The American people see through these fear-mongering tactics and stand with all communities, as they stood with Muslims when Trump implemented his Muslim ban. We stand united against discrimination, as did the writers of our Constitution, and continue to fight arm-in-arm to form a more perfect union. 
• We will not be silent while the President tries to destroy American laws and values. We will not stand by silently while the administration attempts to slash our immigration system and destroy the diversity that is the very embodiment of America. We will not allow our immigration system to be manipulated by the President in order to implement of a white nationalist agenda.
• We are not going anywhere. The people have spoken out against the President’s discriminatory and bigoted agenda. From the rallies at airports to prevent anti-Muslim policies to the walkouts and protests in the street to defend DACA, the American people have shown their strength and power.  We will continue to fight these policies and hold the administration accountable for as long as it takes. President Trump cannot change our laws with the stroke of his pen, just has he cannot change who we are as a nation.

Experts Available

We're in the process of pitching resources from EightPointFiveMillion.org who match either countries impacted by the ban, or are national security experts who can speak to the absurdity of the ban. Please feel free to disseminate this resource to any reporters looking for voices.

#NoMuslimBanEver Social Media Graphics

We've put together a shared folder of graphics. Please use any that resonate with your organization and email any you'd like to add to the folder to Gracie@ReThinkMedia.org. Below are some graphics created after yesterday's decision: