Supreme Court pauses cases on Trump border wall, asylum policy

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to put off arguments in a pair of highly charged immigration cases left over from Donald Trump’s presidency, the latest indication of how the court is adjusting to a post-Trump world.    

Acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar had requested the nation’s highest court cancel oral arguments scheduled in coming weeks for a case involving funding for Trump’s wall along the U.S.-Mexican border, as well as a case centered on Trump's controversial asylum policy. 

President Joe Biden signed during his first days in office orders rolling back Trump's policies in both areas. 

The court's order came days after the justices dismissed a pair of cases involving Trump’s business ties. The questions raised about whether the former president violated the Constitution's anti-corruption clauses are largely moot now that Trump is out of office.

More:Supreme Court dismisses cases questioning Trump profits from private businesses

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Trump declared a national emergency in 2019 to redirect billions of dollars in military funding to use on the wall. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled last year that the move amounted to an end run around Congress, which declined to provide additional money for the project. 

Arguments in the case had been set for this month, but Biden rescinded the emergency during his first hours in office.  

Earlier:Supreme Court will decide future of President Trump's border wall with Mexico

In October, the court agreed to decide the fate of another Trump administration policy that forces migrants seeking asylum to remain in Mexico while their applications are pending. Biden's administration moved in its first days to halt the controversial "Remain in Mexico" program for asylum seekers.

Earlier:Supreme Court considers Trump policy on asylum seekers

Biden has not nominated a solicitor general, the federal government's top lawyer before the Supreme Court, but Wednesday's development underscores the challenge the new administration may have in dealing with several cases pending at the high court in which Biden and Trump took diametrically opposing positions.

Biden's Justice Department dropped a lawsuit the Trump administration filed against Yale University last fall, alleging that the school illegally discriminated against Asian American and white applicants.  

Several other Trump-related cases are pending on the Supreme Court's docket, including litigation over whether the former president's decision to block Americans from his Twitter account was constitutional. Twitter suspended Trump's account last month, and the outcome of the case remains in question.