A federal judge in Boston blocked the Trump administration on Tuesday from barring gender identities on passports that differ from a person’s biological sex.
U.S. District Judge Julia Kobick issued a preliminary injunction that expands on an April ruling that applied to six plaintiffs who sued the federal government. Kobick granted the plaintiffs’ request to make the lawsuit a class action, expanding the injunction to block President Donald Trump’s order restricting passports to only reflect biological sex.
The judge’s order applies to “all people (1) whose gender identity is different from the sex assigned to them under the Passport Policy and/or who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and (2) who have applied, or who, but for the Passport Policy, would apply, for a U.S. passport issued with an ‘M’ or ‘F’ sex designation that is different from the sex assigned to that individual under the Passport Policy.”
Also covered by the court order are “all people whose gender identity is different from the sex assigned to them under the Passport Policy and who have applied, or who, but for the Passport Policy, would apply, for a U.S. passport with an ‘X’ designation.”
On his first day in office, the president signed an order staking his administration’s position recognizing the reality of biological sex. The order was titled: “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism And Restoring Biological Truth To The Federal Government.”
The order in part directed that the “Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, shall implement changes to require that government-issued identification documents, including passports, visas, and Global Entry cards, accurately reflect the holder’s sex.”
Kobrick’s order is the latest in a series of wide-ranging injunctions leveled at the Trump administration blocking a broad swath of the president’s agenda. Republicans have taken steps to crack down on nationwide injunctions that have hobbled the Trump administration.
Last month, the Department of Justice requested that the Supreme Court rein in the use of such orders.
“For the first 170 years of American jurisprudence, nationwide injunctions were virtually unknown,” Solicitor General John Sauer wrote in a court filing. “Their use remained sparing until this century, when they saw a dramatic upsurge in 2017, followed by an explosion in the last three months.”
“These injunctions exceed the district courts’ authority under Article III and gravely encroach on the President’s executive power under Article II. This Court’s intervention is urgently needed to restore the constitutional balance of separated powers,” he added.
House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) in March asked the House Committee on Appropriations in a letter to use Congress’ “power of the purse” to stop the “abuse of nationwide injunctive authority.”
