Donald Trump fires Acting US Attorney General after she tells staff not to defend travel ban

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U.S. officials and others with knowledge of the Cabinet’s thinking insisted on anonymity in order to disclose the officials’ private views.

Trump’s order pauses America’s entire refugee program for four months and indefinitely bans all those from war-ravaged Syria. Critics dispute the president’s assertion that the policy is needed to keep Americans safe, noting that recent acts of extremist violence have been carried out either by U.S. citizens or by individuals whose families weren’t from the nations singled out in the order.

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1:01 PM Trudeau renews opposition to Trump travel ban

The president has privately acknowledged flaws in the rollout, according to a person with knowledge of his thinking. But he’s also blamed the media – his frequent target – for what he believes are reports exaggerating the dissent and the number of people actually affected.

Trump has also said he believes the voters who carried him to victory support the plan as a necessary step to safeguard the nation. And he’s dismissed objectors as attention-seeking rabble-rousers and grandstanding politicians.

After a chaotic weekend during which some U.S. legal permanent residents were detained at airports, some agencies were moving swiftly to try to clean up after the White House.

Homeland Security, the agency tasked with implementing much of the refugee ban, clarified that customs and border agents should allow legal residents to enter the country. The Pentagon was trying to exempt Iraqis who worked alongside the U.S. and coalition forces from the 90-day ban on entry from the predominantly Muslim countries.

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“There are a number of people in Iraq who have worked for us in a partnership role, whether fighting alongside us or working as translators, often doing so at great peril to themselves,” said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman.

Policies with such broad reach are typically vetted by affected agencies and subject to review by multiple agencies. It’s a process that can be frustratingly slow but is aimed at avoiding unintended consequences.

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On Capitol Hill, lawmakers in Trump’s party sought to distance themselves from the wide-ranging order.

While Spicer said “appropriate committees and leadership offices” on Capitol Hill were consulted, GOP lawmakers said their offices had no hand in drafting the order and no briefings from the White House on how it would work.

“I think they know that it could have been done in a better way,” Corker said of the White House.

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "I think they know that it could have been done in a better way," Corker said of the White House.

The executive order was largely crafted by Steve Bannon, Trump’s chief strategist, and Stephen Miller, a young policy adviser and former congressional aide to Trump’s pick for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions. Spicer insisted the advisers had kept departments “in the loop at the level necessary,” but he sidestepped questions about whether Cabinet secretaries were directly involved in the process.

WATCH: Donald Trump fires Attorney General Sally Yates after she tells staff not to defend travel ban. Margaret Brennan reports.

1:58 Donald Trump fires Attorney General Sally Yates after she tells staff not to defend travel ban

Some Trump supporters defended the president, saying his actions should not have come as a surprise given his positions during the campaign.

“Nothing he did over the weekend was new,” said Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and an informal adviser. He conceded that co-ordination could have been better, but he said Trump’s vow to quickly bring change to Washington will sometimes mean he needs to prioritize fast action over broad consultation.

“If you’re the reformer, you need the momentum,” Gingrich said.

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "If you're the reformer, you need the momentum," Gingrich said.

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