Spicer: Trump's Tweets Are, 'Statements By The President Of The United States'
WASHINGTON, D.C. (CBSNewYork) -- President Donald Trump may have tweeted himself into a corner, with his recent online musings regarding a 'travel ban.'
The term 'travel ban' has been used in reference to an executive order restricting travel to the U.S. from a number of Muslim majority countries.
The order has recently been blocked by federal judges in Maryland and Hawaii among others, and lawyers from the Justice Department have been careful to avoid referring to it as a 'travel ban.'
Meanwhile, in a series of other tweets early Tuesday morning, Trump argued that his visit to Saudi Arabia last month was paying off as major Gulf states cut ties with Qatar over radical ideology.
During his daily press briefing White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer appeared to acknowledge that tweets written by President Trump amounted to official policy.
"Well the president is the President of the United States, so I guess they're considered statements by the President of the United States," he said.
Spicer was far less committal when asked if tweets regarding the so-called travel ban would hurt the White House in the Supreme Court when the ACLU takes on the 'travel ban' case.
"I think we've made it clear with respect to that, that the court should follow the law. I think the danger is real, the law is clear, and there's no question that we should prevail at the supreme court," Spicer said.
Also Tuesday, Spicer got into a heated exchange over whether the president has confidence in Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Trump has criticized the Justice Department on Twitter in recent days.
"I have not had a discussion with him about that…. I'm asking; I'm answering a question, which is I have not had that discussion with him," Spicer said. "I said I have not had a discussion with him. I said I have not had a discussion with him on the question. If I haven't had a discussion with him about a subject, I tend not to speak about it."
Meantime, former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has reportedly turned over about 600 pages of documents to a Senate committee investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Senate members conducting a probe into the allegations say it was much worse than previously thought.
The latest report comes from the online news outlet The Intercept, which published a top secret NSA document showing how Russian hackers tried to access voter registration data just days before the election.
"I'm certainly not surprised about Russia's attempt to change the outcome of the election," said U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona).
Government contractor Reality Leigh Winner, 25, was arrested this past weekend and charged with printing out the NSA report at the Augusta, Georgia facility where she worked and mailing it to the publication.
Former FBI Director James Comey will testify on Capitol Hill on Thursday.
When asked what message he had for Comey, Trump said, "I wish him luck."
Perhaps the biggest concern for Comey is whether Trump tried to stop the bureau's investigation into Russian interference.
