Appeals Court Rejects Trump Administration Request To Immediately Reinstate Travel Ban
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Vice President Mike Pence is calling a federal court order declining to reinstate President Donald Trump's ban as "frustrating," describing it as inconsistent and unconstitutional.
Pence tells "Fox News Sunday" that the order from a federal judge in Seattle was wrongly decided, noting that a judge in Boston had earlier come to a different conclusion in initially allowing the ban to stand.
Pence contends that "it's quite clear the president has the ability to decide who has access to this country."
"We are very confident that as we move through the process of these appeals, the president's authority in this area will be upheld and we will continue to take such action that are necessary, but put the safety of the American people first," Pence said on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday.
He says the administration intends to "move very quickly" and will use "all legal means to stay that order."
Pence says quick action is needed so Trump can take the action needed "to protect our country."
On Sunday, a judge in San Francisco rejected the Trump Administration's request for an immediate reinstatement after a federal court refused to set aside a judge's order temporarily blocking the Trump administration's travel ban.
The decision means more legal battles in the case, which are expected to take place over the next several days.
U.S. District Judge James Robart in Seattle ruled late Friday against government lawyers' claims that Washington state and Minnesota, which sued over the ban, lacked the legal grounds to challenge Trump's order.
The Department of Justice filed an appeal of a Seattle federal judge's order halting the ban with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Saturday night.
The decision by the federal judge, who was appointed by former president George W. Bush, drew the scorn of the Commander-In-Chief on Twitter.
"Because the ban was lifted by a judge, many very bad and dangerous people may be pouring into our country," Trump tweeted Saturday. "A terrible decision."
"The judge opens up our country to potential terrorists and others that do not have our best interests at heart," he added later. "Bad people are very happy!"
Trump also praised the ban in his weekly address.
"The executive order establishes a process to develop new vetting and mechanisms to ensure those coming into America love and support our people," Trump said. "That they have good intentions."
New York Sen. Charles Schumer and Christine Quinn were among the speakers celebrating the ruling outside the Stonewall Inn in Lower Manhattan Saturday.
"We will beat them and we will win as long as we stay together," Quinn said.
Protests spread across the country, including in Washington D.C., Los Angeles International Airport and in Mar-a-Lago, Fla., where Trump is spending the weekend.
The State Department said that up to 60,000 foreigners whose visas were electronically cancelled can now travel to the United States, and many are rushing to airports before that window potentially closes.
In a statement released Saturday, the Department of Homeland Security said they have, "suspended any and all actions implementing the affected sections of the Executive Order entitled, 'Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States'."
"This includes actions to suspend passenger system rules that flag travelers for operational action subject to the Executive Order," the statement continued. "DHS personnel will resume inspection of travelers in accordance with standard policy and procedure. At the earliest possible time, the Department of Justice intends to file an emergency stay of this order and defend the president's Executive Order, which is lawful and appropriate. The Order is intended to protect the homeland and the American people, and the president has no higher duty and responsibility than to do so."
Cairo airport officials say a total of 33 U.S.-bound migrants have boarded flights on their way to the United States, taking advantage of a U.S. court's decision.
They said the 33 came from Yemen, Syria and Iraq and were on flights Sunday to John F. Kennedy airport as well as Istanbul, Frankfurt and Paris where they will then fly to the United States.
The officials said the 33 had not previously tried to travel to the United States and been turned back, but rather they are migrants who are rushing to take advantage of the window offered by the court ruling.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Lebanon's National News Agency reported that airlines operating out of Beirut international airport also began allowing residents of the seven majority Muslim countries affected by the travel ban to board flights heading to the United States.
Beirut has no direct flights to the U.S. so travelers usually head to Europe before their final destination.
The news agency said Syrian families left Beirut on Sunday; it did not provide a figure.
Formal arguments in the case begin on Monday.
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