In the wake of what British Prime Minister Theresa May has called a “brutal terrorist attack” in London late Saturday night, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to urge support for his executive order blocking travel to the United States from six Muslim-majority countries.
“We need to be smart, vigilant and tough,” Trump tweeted. “We need the courts to give us back our rights. We need the Travel Ban as an extra level of safety!”
Seven people were killed, three attackers are dead and 48 victims were sent to local hospitals after a vehicle plowed into pedestrians on London Bridge. There were also stabbings at the nearby Borough Market.
The president’s travel ban, which stemmed from Trump’s campaign promise to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S., is currently tangled up in the courts. It has been ruled unconstitutional by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals and blocked by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and a federal judge in Hawaii. The Department of Justice recently asked the Supreme Court to weigh in.
Trump went on to promise support to London during the incident.
The president also retweeted a message from the Drudge Report, a right-wing viral website, about “fears of a new terror attack” roughly two hours before London authorities formally attributed the incidents to terror.
And on Sunday morning, Trump tweeted, “We must stop being politically correct and get down to the business of security for our people. If we don’t get smart it will only get worse.”
Trump also took aim at London mayor Sadiq Khan, tweeting, “At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is “no reason to be alarmed!”
Another tweet read, “Do you notice we are not having a gun debate right now? That’s because they used knives and a truck!”
Trump was briefed on the situation, according to the White House. According to federal law enforcement and national security officials, the National Security Council is monitoring the situation as are the appropriate elements of the FBI and Homeland Security.