President Donald Trump’s litany of derogatory comments about Muslims before the election might still be enough to sink his latest attempt at a travel ban, although immigration advocates will have a tougher time persuading judges to block it, legal experts say.
Unlike the earlier versions, which targeted several Muslim-majority nations, Trump’s new executive order has the look and feel of a more well-considered presidential directive -- the kind that courts generally seek to avoid second-guessing, said Peter Spiro, an immigration law professor at Temple University in Philadelphia. Trump’s comments about Muslims appear to be the only remaining legal vulnerability for the ban, he said.