Op-ed: Clark sues to block Trump actions

By Charity Clark
Vermont Attorney General

In the chaos of President Trump’s first three weeks in office, I sued on behalf of Vermont to block unconstitutional or illegal actions.

President Trump’s executive orders and early actions reflect his campaign promises and dark view of the state of the union. Unfortunately, at least three of these orders and actions also violated the Constitution – and many more indicate future violations are likely.

As your Attorney General, it is my job to uphold the Constitution of the United States and, as your Attorney General, I have been given the power to sue on behalf of the State of Vermont. I want to reassure Vermonters that the lawyers of my office are working night and day reviewing and analyzing every single executive order and all other questionable acts by the Trump administration.

The first lawsuit concerned an executive order to end birthright citizenship. This executive order, which would deny citizenship to babies born in the United States solely because of their parents’ immigration status, is plainly unconstitutional. Within 48 hours, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the executive order from taking effect.

The second lawsuit concerned the Office of Management & Budget memo that unconstitutionally and illegally froze federal funding to recipients of grants – including many in Vermont. This impacted a wide swath of programs from those related to public safety and veterans to new Americans and food for low-income new mothers, as examples. In response to our lawsuit, a judge blocked the funding freeze.

In President Trump’s third week, I joined numerous other state attorneys general in suing the president and others for illegal and unconstitutional mismanagement at the U.S. Department of Treasury. Our lawsuit sought to protect the sensitive financial data of millions of Americans – something of great concern to many Vermonters who have contacted my office.

Several of the executive orders of our new president attack equality and civil rights. The struggle for equality found early allies in Vermont. We were early adopters of civil unions and other protections for the LGBTQ+ community. In contrast, President Trump is attempting to end DEI efforts, declare that there are only two genders — male and female, improbably fixed at conception — and deny the existence of transgender, nonbinary and intersex people. This directly conflicts with Vermont’s ethos of accepting our neighbors as they are. I want to assure Vermonters — and especially kids — that I am using the full force of my office to defend their rights.

Another consistent focus of President Trump is immigration. While immigration is the federal government’s responsibility, the president has suggested he intends to commandeer state and local law enforcement to assist with his immigration goals. The Constitution, however, does not permit this. Moreover, Vermont has put a critical policy in place – the Fair and Impartial Policing Policy – to ensure that state and local law enforcement officers focus on public safety in their communities, not the concerns of immigration.

Like you, I love Vermont with my whole heart, and I will protect our resources, our public safety and, especially, the people of our brave little state. Over the next few years, you may hear a lot of bad news coming out of the White House. I want you to know that I will be here, using the full authority of my office to stand up for the rule of law in court and protect our freedoms.