'Crumbled like a house of cards': Trump-appointed judge slams administration argument

A federal judge smacked down the legal reasoning behind one of President Donald Trump's hardline immigration policies.

U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly blocked the administration Thursday from immediately deporting Guatemalan migrant children who came to the U.S. alone, and he sharply rejected the government's argument that their plan was intended to reunite them with parents who wanted them back home, reported Newsweek.

"That explanation crumbled like a house of cards about a week later," he wrote. "There is no evidence before the Court that the parents of these children sought their return."

A temporary order had already been in place preventing the children's removal, but that order was set to expire Tuesday, so the Trump-appointed Kelly granted a preliminary injunction that indefinitely extends the protection.

The judge declined to broaden his ruling to cover children from other countries, but he noted that attempts to deport those children "would likely be unlawful," although the administration may appeal Kelly's decision.

The administration argued the government had the authority to return the children and claimed to be acting at the behest of Guatemalan parents, but they walked that back a week later, and the Guatemalan government expressed concern about minors nearing 18 years old in U.S. custody who could be transferred to adult facilities.