A federal judge in Boston on Monday said she would extend legal relief to Harvard University in its fight against the Donald Trump administration’s effort to halt the entry of Harvard students coming in from overseas.
In a court hearing, US District Judge Allison Burroughs said she would extend until June 23 a temporary restraining order she issued a day after Trump unveiled a proclamation seeking to prevent Harvard’s international students from entering the country.
The order would be in place while Burroughs weighs issuing a longer-term injunction.
In issuing the proclamation on June 4, Trump cited the university’s engagement with China along with other national security concerns. It marked the first time he directly used his executive powers to limit Harvard’s ability to host foreign students.
The Department of Homeland Security had previously sought to limit the university’s ability to enrol students, but Burroughs last month blocked that action and this month extended the pause.
In an amendment to its lawsuit from last month to challenge the new directive, Harvard said the US president’s proclamation was “an end run around” Burroughs’ previous decision and that it violated the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
