This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Donald Trump’s offensive against so-called sanctuary cities was dealt a blow on Thursday when a US appeals court panel made up of Republican-appointed judges upheld an injunction blocking the justice department from certain threats it has made against the havens nationwide.

The injunction has been stopping the DoJ from denying public safety grants to such city and county areas that have declared they will limit their cooperation with the administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

The seventh circuit court of appeals backed a lower court’s order in a case brought by the city of Chicago. The appeals court on Thursday agreed that the injunction should apply nationally while the lawsuit proceeds in federal court.

Chicago sued last year after attorney general Jeff Sessions announced that he would cut off cities from a number of government grants unless they allowed federal immigration authorities unlimited access to local jails and also agreed to provide 48 hours notice before releasing anyone wanted for immigration violations.

The lawsuit argued that Sessions exceeded his authority by imposing new conditions beyond those Congress prescribed when it established the grant program.

In the ruling on Thursday, a three-judge panel said its role was not to decide national immigration policy, but rather to protect the separation of powers between the branches of the federal government.

“The attorney general in this case used the sword of federal funding to conscript state and local authorities to aid in federal civil immigration enforcement,” the court wrote. “But the power of the purse rests with Congress.”

A justice department spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment on Thursday.

Donald Trump made tougher immigration enforcement a centerpiece of his campaign and presidency, along with a pledge to build a wall along the US-Mexican border.

All three judges on the seventh circuit panel were nominated by Republican presidents. One of the judges, Daniel Manion, said he agreed with an injunction but would have limited its scope only to the city of Chicago. The other two judges prevailed with a majority decision after giving the opinion that their ruling would apply nationally.