Judge rules Trump administration can’t tie transportation funding to immigration

Judge John McConnell previously issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Transportation Department directive.

A judge ruled that the Trump administration cannot link state transportation funding to immigration enforcement. Politico

By Alex Nieves 11/04/2025 The Trump administration cannot withhold billions of dollars in transportation funding to states that refuse to cooperate with immigration enforcement, a federal judge in Rhode Island ruled Tuesday.

Chief U.S. District Judge John McConnell wrote in his ruling that the U.S. Department of Transportation and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy “blatantly overstepped” their authority in attempting to link funding used to maintain roads, bridges and highways to immigration demands.

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