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Judge Strikes Down Trump Plan To Tie Funding to Immigration Enforcement
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A federal judge in Rhode Island on Thursday ruled against the Trump administration's plan to condition funding for transportation initiatives across the country on cooperation with immigration authorities, saying that the plan would violate the Constitution.
Judge John J. McConnell Jr. in 10-page ruling addressed the "Duffy Directive," also known as the Immigration Enforcement Condition (IEC) which U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued in April.
Duffy attempted to require transportation grant recipients cooperate with Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) deportation operations or lose out on funding from several subagencies. In response, 20 states sued the administration, seeking an immediate injunction against the directive, which McConnell Jr. granted.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks during a news conference on May 20, 2025 in Austin, Texas.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks during a news conference on May 20, 2025 in Austin, Texas."The IEC, backed by the Duffy Directive, is arbitrary and capricious in its scope
and lacks specificity in how the States are to cooperate on immigration enforcement in exchange for Congressionally appropriated transportation dollars–grant money that the States rely on to keep their residents safely and efficiently on the road, in the sky, and on the rails," the judge wrote.
He added that the conditions would violate the Spending Clause as well, as the IEC is "not at all reasonably related to the transportation funding program grants whose statutorily articulated purposes are for the maintenance and safety" of the various transit apparatuses across the country.
The court issued its order quickly due to an impending June 20 deadline for applicants to file for certain grants, all of which would have included the Duffy Directive language.
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
