Trump’s immigration ban faces tough scrutiny in court

TIL Desk/World/Washington-President Donald Trump’s controversial immigration order today faced intense scrutiny as a court of appeals grilled the Trump Administration whether the travel ban unconstitutionally discriminates against Muslims and questioned the arguments that curbs were motivated by national security concerns.

Asserting that President Trump was within his constitutional rights and obligations to sign the executive order that temporarily bans immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries, the Justice Department urged court of appeals to reinstate the travel ban — put on hold by the courts last week.

During the hour-long hearing, conducted by phone, before a three-judge panel of the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals here, the Justice Department lawyer August Flentje said in signing the executive order Trump struck the balance between national security and the practice of allowing people from entering the country.