A federal judge on Friday struck down sweeping immigration restrictions imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration on 39 countries, criticizing the measures as driven by an anti-immigrant agenda. U.S. District Judge John McConnell issued the ruling, targeting the restrictions introduced in November 2025 following a shooting incident involving two National Guard members in Washington, D.C.
McConnell said the policy blocked citizens from the 39 nations from receiving final decisions on asylum applications, green cards, work permits, and naturalization petitions. The change “has cast the lives of countless immigrants living in the United States into legal limbo,” he wrote in his decision.
The judge specifically rebuked the Trump administration’s claim that the restrictions were necessary to address national security concerns. He argued that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had used “false national security concerns to mask an anti-immigrant ideology.” “USCIS’s pause on processing cannot be attributed to any misconduct by these individuals; rather, it arises solely from the happenstance of their birthplace,” McConnell stated.
McConnell further noted that “more than six months later, many of these individuals remain without employment, without legal status, and without the ability to meaningfully plan for their future.” The affected countries are primarily in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
Trump campaigned on a promise to conduct mass deportations of undocumented immigrants but has increasingly targeted legal immigration pathways. In January, the State Department separately suspended processing of most immigrant visas from 75 countries, citing a high risk that immigrants from those nations would rely on U.S. social services.
The Trump administration also lifted caps on the number of thoroughly vetted refugees allowed into the U.S., initially setting a record low of 7,500 and later adding 10,000 more. The administration prioritized resettlement of white South Africans, a move critics denounced as overtly racist.
In a statement, Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, said the latest ruling “affirms a fundamental principle: the federal government cannot shut down legal immigration pathways or discriminate against people based on where they come from.” “These unlawful policies have caused immense harm to families, workers, asylum seekers, and communities across the country who have been left in limbo, unable to work, access protections, or move forward with their lives,” she added.
