California is leading the coalition, and its Attorney General Xavier Becerra was joined by his counterparts from the states of Maine, Oregon and Pennsylvania, as well as the District of Columbia, to challenge Trump’s policy to restrict immigrants’ access to legal status if they use food or medical benefits offered by the federal government.
“The Rule discourages hardworking eligible immigrants and their families from accessing critical health, nutrition, and housing programs that supplement their modest wages and help them make ends meet,” he said. “The Rule will disproportionately block admission of non-white, non-European immigrants from Asia, Latin America, and Africa,” and create more obstacles for them in the path to U.S. citizenship, Becerra added.
“We’re standing up to the Trump administration in court to protect our economy, our families, and our most sacred values,” he said.