Trump loses Muslim Ban Suspension Appeal: 'SEE YOU IN COURT'
Trump responds to ruling on travel ban: 'SEE YOU IN COURT'
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump said Thursday's federal appellate court ruling against reinstating his refugee and immigration order was a "political decision" that jeopardized national security.
"We have a situation where the security of our country is at stake and it's a very, very serious situation so we look forward ... to seeing them in court," Trump said. "We're going to win the case."
Trump, in a brief, impromptu appearance in the West Wing, did not specify what his administration's next legal steps would be and said he had not yet conferred with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was sworn into office earlier Thursday.
The president said he did not believe the decision undercut his presidency.
In a unanimous decision, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined Thursday to block a lower-court ruling that suspended the executive order preventing travellers from seven Muslim-majority nations from entering the U.S.
The Justice Department said it was "reviewing the decision and considering its options." It could appeal the judge's restraining order to the U.S. Supreme Court or it could attempt to make the case for the travel ban in the district court.
White House counsellor Kellyanne Conway suggested the next step would be to argue the merits of the executive order.
"The statute provides a president ... with great latitude and authority to protect the citizens and to protect the nation's national security," Conway said. "This was not argued on the merits. Now that we'll have an opportunity to argue on the merits we look forward to doing that. We look forward to prevailing."
The ruling represented a setback for Trump's administration and the second legal defeat for the new president in the past week. Trump's decision to sign the executive order late last month has sparked protests at airports around the world as authorities barred scores of travellers from entering the country amid confusion over how to implement the details.
The appellate decision brushed aside arguments by the Justice Department that the president has the constitutional power to restrict entry to the United States and that the courts cannot second-guess his determination that such a step was needed to prevent terrorism.
Trump responds to ruling on travel ban: 'SEE YOU IN COURT' | CTV News
