White House press secretary Sean Spicer linked the order to former President Barack Obama's administration, pointing out that the previous administration identified the seven countries — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — for higher travel restrictions.

Speaking to Fox News' Chris Wallace, Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway dubbed the Brooklyn judge who blocked the deportation of a small group of people from the seven countries as an "Obama-appointed judge." She dismissed the notion that the ban was particularly discriminatory or that it would permanently separate families.