The federal judge who then-candidate Donald Trump once accused of being biased against him because of his tough immigration stance could end up deciding whether the president gets his long-promised border wall.
U.S. District Court Judge Gonzalo Curiel, whose parents emigrated from Mexico, was attacked by Trump in 2016. Trump said the judge held “tremendous hostility” against him in a lawsuit involving Trump University because of Curiel’s Mexican descent.
Trump doubled-down on the controversial remarks during the campaign and told The Wall Street Journal that Curiel has "an absolute conflict of interest" because of his Mexican heritage in addition to "an inherent conflict of interest" because of the proposal to build a border wall.
Curiel is now expected to hear a case on Friday regarding the Trump administration’s ability to ignore environmental laws in the construction of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, The Hill reported.
If the judge rules against Trump, it could undermine the construction of barriers on unfenced portions of the border. If the ruling if favorable to the White House, it would let the administration to issue waivers on environmental laws and build sections of the border.
