By Jack Queen
(Reuters) – Donald Trump’s flurry of executive orders has sparked lawsuits seeking to stymie the U.S. president’s plans for cracking down on immigration, shaking up the federal bureaucracy and reversing protections for transgender people.
Here is a look at the cases and where they stand.
FEDERAL SPENDING
A federal judge in Washington D.C on Jan. 28 paused a sweeping Trump administration directive freezing federal grants, loans and other financial assistance pending a review to ensure they align with the president’s priorities, at the request of nonprofits who said it would be devastating to their operations.
The pause ordered by Judge Loren Linn AliKhan was a brief emergency measure pending arguments over the nonprofits’ request for a temporary restraining order that would last longer while the court weighs the directive, which the group said is unconstitutional.
The Trump administration rescinded the directive on Jan. 29, but White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that this was only to end any confusion caused by the court’s order. The president’s orders on federal funding “remain in full force and effect,” Leavitt said.
A judge overseeing a similar case filed by a group of state attorneys general said at a Wednesday hearing that he would likely impose an order pausing any funding freeze even though the formal directive was rescinded.
The states argue in that case that the freeze infringes the U.S. Congress’ exclusive power of the purse and would be devastating to a host of critical programs ranging from public health to education and housing.
ENDING BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP
Democratic state attorneys general and civil rights groups have filed at least five lawsuits challenging Trump’s executive order curtailing the right to automatic birthright citizenship in the U.S., which was paused by a judge on Jan. 23.
U.S. District Judge John Coughenour found the order “blatantly” violated the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and granted a request by Democrat-led Washington, Arizona, Illinois and Oregon to block it while their legal challenge proceeds.
Four similar lawsuits have been combined with that case in Washington federal court, and a hearing is scheduled for Feb. 6.
CRACKING DOWN ON IMMIGRATION
Civil rights and religious groups have sued to block Trump administration policies aimed at ramping up deportations and curtailing the number of people entering the country seeking asylum protections.
In one high-profile case, a New York-based immigrant rights group has sued to block Trump’s move to expand fast-track deportations where defendants do not have access to an attorney and cannot present evidence.
Another pro-immigrant group has sued the government in Illinois federal court to block Trump’s expected crackdown on so-called sanctuary city policies, which limit local cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
A coalition of Quaker groups, meanwhile, has sued to block a new U.S. Department of Homeland Security policy authorizing immigration agents to conduct raids in houses of worship.
REMAKING FEDERAL WORKFORCE
Public interest groups have filed at least three lawsuits against Trump’s U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which the president says will advise him on how to shrink the federal workforce and slash spending.
The lawsuits allege DOGE, which is headed by billionaire Tesla CEO and Trump ally Elon Musk, does not comply with legal requirements for so-called advisory committees, or groups that give advice and recommendations to the president.
The Federal Advisory Committee Act requires those groups to include a fair balance of viewpoints and make their records available to the public. They are also barred from meeting secretly and must have a charter laying out their purpose and the nature of their work.
Unions representing employees of the U.S. Treasury and other federal workers have also filed lawsuits seeking to block Trump from implementing a plan to weaken job protections for civil servants, which would allow him to replace long-serving government employees with loyalists.
TRANSGENDER RIGHTS
A transgender woman serving time in a federal prison has sued over Trump’s executive order directing the federal government to recognize only two sexes and requiring trans women to be housed in men’s prisons, arguing it violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
(Reporting by Jack Queen in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Deepa Babington)
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