President Trump Sunday told Americans to blame the judge who halted his immigration order if any of those who enter from the countries subject to his suspended travel ban commit attacks.
“Just cannot believe a judge would put our country in such peril. If something happens blame him and court system. People pouring in. Bad!” Trump tweeted Sunday.
Just cannot believe a judge would put our country in such peril. If something happens blame him and court system. People pouring in. Bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2017
He added that he’s instructing the Department of Homeland Security to vet the people coming to the U.S. “VERY CAREFULLY.”
“The courts are making the job very difficult!” he wrote.
I have instructed Homeland Security to check people coming into our country VERY CAREFULLY. The courts are making the job very difficult!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2017
Trump’s tweets top off a weekend of attacks against U.S. District Judge James Robart, a George W. Bush appointee, who temporarily stopped the president’s controversial travel ban Friday.
Trump’s executive order, announced in late January, temporarily suspended immigration from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen for 90 days. It halted the country’s refugee resettlement program for 120 days and banned Syrian refugees from the U.S. indefinitely.
“The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!” he tweeted Saturday.
The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2017
Republican Sen. Ben Sasse strongly criticized Trump on Sunday, saying he didn’t understand why the president would say that.
“We don’t have so-called judges. We don’t have so-called senators. We don’t have so-called presidents,” Sasse said on ABC’s “This Week.”
“We have people from three different branches of government who take an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution and it’s important that we do better civics education for our kids,” he added. “So we don’t have any so-called judges. We have real judges.”
But Trump clearly is not concerned about such criticism, doubling down by suggesting the judge could end up with blood on his hands.
Vice President Pence defended Trump.
“President Trump’s made it clear that our administration is going to put the safety and security of the American people first,” Pence said.
