US president Donald Trump has said “see you in court” in response to a federal appeals court decision to uphold the temporary suspension of his travel ban.
The president responded to the ruling on Twitter, saying: “See you in court, the security of our nation is at stake!”
Trump’s ban on travel from seven Muslim-majority countries into the US received a major setback on Thursday, after a federal appeals court unanimously upheld the temporary suspension of the order.
SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2017
In a unanimous ruling, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a case taken by the states of Washington and Minnesota questioning the legality of Mr Trump’s controversial order.
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The Trump administration is expected to appeal the ruling to the US supreme court.
The landmark ruling is the latest move in an increasingly acrimonious battle between Mr Trump and the judiciary which has thrown up questions about the limits of the US constitution and the powers of the president.
The ruling by the San Francisco court means that nationals from the seven countries affected by the travel ban are now free to travel to the US, pending the outcome of any supreme court appeal.
In its ruling, the court said that it would not block the ruling by a lower court which suspended the travel ban.
The three-person court ruled that the states in question had proven that they have “alleged harms to their proprietary interests traceable to the executive order”.
Temporary suspension
Last Friday, district judge James Robart issued a temporary order halting the travel ban announced by the Trump administration on January 27th on the back of a case taken by Washington and Minnesota states.
The US justice department had appealed the decision, arguing, on behalf of the Trump administration, that the president had the power to impose immigration restrictions on the grounds of national security.
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