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| US President Donald Trump speaks as he welcomes the Clemson Tigers, the 2016 NCAA Football National Champions, at the White House in Washington |
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticised a federal appeals court one day after it handed him another legal setback by refusing to revive his US travel ban on people from six Muslim-majority nations, and appeared poised for the nationโs top court to weigh in.
On Monday, the San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals became the second federal appeals court to reject the Republican Trump administrationโs bid to undo a Hawaii federal judgeโs decision that blocked the temporary travel ban in a dispute headed to the US Supreme Court.
The three-judge panel said Trumpโs March 6 order violated existing immigration law, but did not address whether it was unconstitutional discrimination against Muslims.
Trumpโs 90-day ban targets travellers from Libya, Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. โWell, as predicted, the 9th Circuit did it again โ Ruled against the TRAVEL BAN at such a dangerous time in the history of our country. S.C.โ Trump said in a post on Twitter, apparently referencing the US supreme court.
The nationโs top court, which leans conservative after Trumpโs appointee won confirmation as the ninth justice earlier this year, could act as soon as this week on his administrationโs request to reinstate the order.
The 9th Circuit, headed by Democratic appointees, largely left in place a nationwide injunction by Judge Derrick Watson of Hawaii that stopped parts of the order, which Trump contends is needed to prevent terrorism in the United States.
Those who have challenged the travel ban dispute that it is needed to protect Americans and argue that the order violates the US Constitutionโs bar against favouring or disfavouring a particular religion.
Another appeals court, the Richmond, Virginia-based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals, last month upheld a Maryland judgeโs ruling that also blocked Trumpโs ban.
Trump has been on the losing side in all four court rulings on the March order and has asked the US Supreme Court for an emergency review.
In a statement on Monday, US Attorney General Sessions said Trumpโs executive order was lawful and that the court rulings have had a โchilling effectโ on security operations.
