Donald Trump, Australian PM Offer Mixed Messages on Refugee Deal
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull declined to comment on his first telephone call with Trump as national leaders
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Australia's prime minister insisted Thursday that a deal struck with the Obama administration that would allow mostly Muslim refugees rejected by Australia to be resettled in the United States was still on, despite President Donald Trump dubbing the agreement "dumb" and vowing to review it, NBC News reported.
Former Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson has been sworn in as secretary of state during a ceremony with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Feb. 1. The Senate approved Tillerson’s nomination earlier Wednesday on a vote of 56-43.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull declined to comment on his first telephone call with Trump as national leaders.
"It's better that these things — these conversations — are conducted candidly, frankly, privately," Turnbull told reporters. Later, however, he denied during an interview with Sydney radio station 2GB that President Trump had hung up on him, saying the conversation had ended "courteously." Turnball added: "I can assure you the relationship is very strong.
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Protestors rally during a demonstration against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017, in New York City. President Trump signed a controversial executive order the day before that halted refugees and residents from predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States.
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People gather for a rally in New York's Battery Park in New York, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017, as they protest against President Donald Trump's executive order banning travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries. The list of countries does not include Saudi Arabia, which is where most of the 9/11 terrorists were from.
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Actress Cynthia Nixon joins protestors rallying against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017.
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Demonstrators rally during a protest against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017 in New York City.
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Demonstrators gather outside Tom Bradley International Terminal during a protest against President Donald Trump's travel ban on refugees and citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations, at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017.
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Protestors rally during a demonstration against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017.
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Demonstrators rally during a demonstration against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
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Tom Perez, former Secretary of Labor under President Obama and current candidate to lead the DNC joins protesters at Houston International Airport Saturday.
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Demonstrators rally during a protest against the Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017.
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People opposed to President Donald Trump's executive order barring entry to the U.S. by Muslims from certain countries demonstrate at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017, in Los Angeles.
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While demonstrators marching inside to the Tom Bradley international Terminal, Airport police officers try to stop them at rally against a ban on Muslim immigration at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California, United States on Saturday.
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Demonstrators rally during a protest against President Donald Trump's Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017.
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Demonstrators rally during a protest against President Donald Trump's Muslim immigration ban at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017.
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A demonstrator holds a sign during a rally against Muslim immigration ban at San Francisco International Airport on January 28, 2017 in San Francisco, California.
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A police officer walks past demonstrators at the international arrival terminal at San Francisco International Airport during a rally against a ban on Muslim immigration.
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A demonstrator takes a photograph during a rally against muslim immigration ban at San Francisco International Airport.
A woman holds a sign during a rally against a ban on Muslim immigration at San Francisco International Airport.
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A demonstrator holds a plaque during a rally against a ban on Muslim immigration at San Francisco International Airport.
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Demonstrators block traffic at the international arrival terminal as they protest against Muslim immigration ban at San Francisco International Airport.
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A young girl joins hundreds of people protesting at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport Saturday.
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Protesters gather at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Saturday in Dallas, Texas.
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Protesters gather to denounce President Donald Trump's executive order at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on January 28, 2017 in Dallas, Texas.
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Protesters gather at the international arrivals area of the Washington Dulles International Airport, Jan. 28, 2017, in Sterling, Virginia.
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Protesters stand together at the Miami International Airport against the executive order that President Donald Trump signed clamping down on refugee admissions and temporarily restricting travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, Jan. 29, 2017, in Miami, Florida.
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Protesters stand together at the Miami International Airport against the executive order that President Donald Trump signed clamping down on refugee admissions and temporarily restricting travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries, Jan. 29, 2017, in Miami, Florida.
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Demonstrators gather near The White House to protest President Donald Trump's travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries, Jan. 29, 2017, in Washington, DC.
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Demonstrators gather near The White House to protest President Donald Trump's travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries, Jan. 29, 2017, in Washington, DC.
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Muslim women pray during a protest in Copley Square in Boston, Jan. 29, 2017.
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People take part in a protest against President Trump's executive orders on immigration in Copley Square in Boston, Jan. 29, 2017.
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Protesters pause while attending a rally in lower Manhattan against President Donald Trump's new immigration policies, Jan. 29, 2017, in New York City.
Yet shortly after Turnbull made those comments to reporters, Trump took to Twitter to slam the deal. "Do you believe it?" the president wrote. "The Obama Administration agreed to take thousands of illegal immigrants from Australia. Why? I will study this dumb deal!"
Later Thursday, U.S. Sen. John McCain issued a statement saying he had called Australia' ambassador to the U.S. to "express my unwavering support for the U.S.-Australia alliance."
