UPDATE: President Trump responds:

The Democrats are delaying my cabinet picks for purely political reasons. They have nothing going but to obstruct. Now have an Obama A.G. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 31, 2017

UPDATE II: Yates has been fired.

***Original Post***

With Sen. Jeff Sessions’ (R-AL) attorney general nomination still in limbo, Sally Yates, an Obama holdover that is serving as acting attorney general, ordered the Department of Justice not to defend President Donald J. Trump’s executive order on immigration. In the letter, Yates noted that she was not convinced that the order was legal (via NYT):

Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates, a holdover from the Obama administration, ordered the Justice Department on Monday not to defend President Trump’s executive order on immigration in court. “I am responsible for ensuring that the positions we take in court remain consistent with this institution’s solemn obligation to always seek justice and stand for what is right,” Ms. Yates wrote in a letter to Justice Department lawyers. “At present, I am not convinced that the defense of the executive order is consistent with these responsibilities nor am I convinced that the executive order is lawful.” […] “For as long as I am the acting attorney general, the Department of Justice will not present arguments in defense of the executive order, unless and until I become convinced that it is appropriate to do so,” she wrote.

Fired Sally Yates letter devoid of legal argument. Reeks of moral preening, grandstanding. pic.twitter.com/J7RdnRrzxs — Brit Hume (@brithume) January 31, 2017

This course of action will be reversed once Sessions is confirmed as attorney general. That is a forgone conclusion, but for the time being—the Department of Justice will remain on the sidelines concerning defending this directive from the Trump White House.The order’s most controversial portion limited immigration (a 120-day moratorium) from seven predominantly Muslim countries, though it’s dishonest to say it’s a straight up Muslim ban. It’s also legal.

Even Lawfare Blog, which ripped the order, admitted that the “malevolent” aspects of this order are “certainly achievable within the president’s lawful authority.” They also added that the executive’s power on admitting refugees is “vast.” Lawyers Dan McLaughlin and Andrew C. McCarthy also noted that Trump’s executive order is legal and well within his constitutional authority, though McLaughlin did comment that it’s somewhat disconcerting that national policy is shifting away from America’s long-standing tradition of accepting refugees. On the other hand, he noted that what Trump is doing is not a major departure from what the Obama administration did: