U.S. federal judge rules Trump administration's policy of suspending immigrant visas from 75 countries illegal

(Central News Agency, Washington, 21st Comprehensive Foreign News Report) U.S. President Trump’s administration has tightened immigration and suspended immigrant visa applications for people from 75 countries. A federal court judge ruled today that the policy was "manifestly illegal" and exceeded the legal authority of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Reuters reported that Manhattan Federal Court Judge Jeannette Vargas said the policy announced by the State Department in January was "clearly illegal" and violated federal immigration laws. The law expressly states that the Secretary of State has no authority to interfere with the authority of consular officials to process immigrant visas.

Vargas was appointed by Democratic former President Joe Biden. She wrote in the ruling that this policy prohibits applicants of specific nationalities from obtaining immigrant visas and directly bypasses the existing legal mechanism.

The State Department's suspension of issuance of immigrant visas affects applicants from countries such as Brazil, Colombia, and Uruguay in Latin America; Bosnia and Albania in the Balkans; Pakistan and Bangladesh in South Asia; and many countries in Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean.

The State Department said at the time that applicants from these countries "are at high risk of becoming public charges and draining U.S. local, state and federal government resources."

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling.

The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit brought by immigrant advocacy groups the Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities Together, as well as immigrant visa applicants and U.S. citizens applying for immigrant visas for family members in scheduled countries.