The federal judge overseeing the census case in the Southern District of New York has blocked the government’s motion to withdraw its team of lawyers who had been working on the case previously.

Judge Jesse Furman’s order doesn’t block the new team of lawyers from entering the case, but he says the Department of Justice must provide “satisfactory reasons” for its surprise decision to withdraw the previous team.

“Defendants provide no reasons, let alone “satisfactory reasons,” for the substitution of counsel,” Furman wrote in the ruling. “And as to the second factor, Defendants’ mere “expect[ation] that withdrawal of current counsel will [not] cause any disruption” is not good enough, particularly given the circumstances of this case.”

Notably, the judge puts the government’s own arguments prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling against them, where it had repeatedly called for expediting the case in order to resolve the citizenship question dispute and get the census printed.

“If anything, that urgency — and the need for efficient judicial proceedings — has only grown since that time,” Furman said.

The DOJ declined to comment on this decision.

President Donald Trump issued his reaction on Twitter on Tuesday night. Read more

Read also: McConnell cites Obama in reparations debate: ‘We both are the descendants of slave owners’

The federal judge overseeing the census case in the Southern District of New York has blocked the government’s motion to withdraw its team of lawyers who had been working on the case previously.

The federal judge overseeing the census case in the Southern District of New York has blocked the government’s motion to withdraw its team of lawyers who had been working on the case previously.

The federal judge overseeing the census case in the Southern District of New York has blocked the government’s motion to withdraw its team of lawyers who had been working on the case previously.