What Happens Next in Border Wall Dispute After Federal Judge Blocks $1B in Funding?

federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to use money intended for military use to instead fund construction of a wall along the nation’s southern border with Mexico. But this ruling was far from being the final word on the matter, with Trump saying Saturday he intends to appeal the decision.

Though Judge Gilliam set a June 5 date for all parties to meet and “discuss a plan for expeditiously resolving this matter on the merits, whether through a bench trial, cross-motions for summary judgment, or other means,” it is highly unlikely this dispute is headed toward a trial or settlement in the near future.

Rather, the matter is in all likelihood destined to be appealed by the Justice Department, particularly since it involves a District Court judge declaring what is effectively a nationwide injunction.

While the Justice Department is not commenting on when or if it plans to file an appeal, Attorney General William Barr has made it clear — as recently as this week — that he opposes judges granting far-reaching injunctions.

Nationwide injunctions, said Barr on Tuesday at the American Law Institute, “have frustrated presidential policy for most of the President’s term with no clear end in sight.” He also accused judges granting these injunctions of “inject[ing] the courts into the political process.”

Given Barr’s and the administration’s attitude toward what they view as judicial overreach, there is little doubt that Gilliam’s injunction will be appealed to the Ninth Circuit, a court that Trump has previously publicly derided for ruling against him.

Even if the DOJ is successful at the appellate level, the organizations behind the underlying lawsuit — the American Civil Liberties Union and the Sierra Club — have historically shown little reservation about taking their disputes to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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