Minnesota, Maryland and Maine have joined California in following a lawsuit against Trump's order to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for young immigrants who've been allowed to go to school and work without living in fear of deportation.
While other states are arguing that Trump's order violates the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses, the lawsuit spearheaded by California is apparently focused on the economic consequences of the order.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Trump’s move to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that protected these immigrants from deportation and gave them work permits would be “an economic travesty” for the most populous U.S. state, which depends on immigrant labor. [...]
“In California you don’t become the world’s sixth-largest economy, just because,” Becerra said.
This brings the total number of states challenging Trump's order to 20 plus the District of Columbia. And I'm sure Governor Paul LePage will be delighted to find that his state is now involved.
I'm a little surprised that more cities have not challenged the order directly, but they still could. They could also file legal briefs in court to support the state lawsuits without becoming a party to them.
This lawsuit was filed in California under the jurisdiction of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.