<p>A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from denying asylum to migrants who illegally cross into the United States, saying the policy likely violated federal law on asylum eligibility.</p>
<p>The judge pointedly denied the claim that the president, by fiat, could give the manner of entry added legal weight as a determinant of asylum. He reasoned that the “interpretive guide” of United Nations compacts on asylum lent extra force to congressional requirements. The intent of Congress, Tigar wrote, was “unambiguous.”</p>