Apple considering legal action against Trump travel ban

Apple CEO Tim Cook says his company is considering legal action aimed at reversing President Trump’s executive order on immigration, which temporarily restricts U.S. entry for refugees and travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations.

“More than any other country in the world, this country is strong because of our immigrant background and our capacity and ability as people to welcome people from all kinds of backgrounds,” Cook told The Wall Street Journal Tuesday.

“That’s what makes us special,” Cook said, adding that his company’s staff strives to “look like the world” due to its presence in most global markets. “We ought to pause and really think deeply about that.”

{mosads}Cook declined to specify Apple’s possible legal options, vowing only that “we want to be constructive and productive.”

The tech CEO added, however, it was “a simple decision to oppose the executive order.”

“These are people that have friends and family,” Cook said of Apple employees affected by Trump’s order. “They’re co-workers. They’re taxpayers. They’re key parts of the community.”

Cook added he had received numerous “heart-wrenching stories” from Apple employees affected by Trump’s decision.

Trump signed an executive order Friday imposing a 90-day ban on travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Sudan and Yemen. The measure also halted general refugee admissions into the U.S. for 120 days and paused Syrian refugee resettlement indefinitely due to that country’s ongoing civil war.

The White House says the order is necessary to protect national security, noting that the Obama administration had put the seven countries on a list of countries where terrorism was a concern. 

Cook blasted the order Saturday, saying immigration had proved essential to Apple’s thriving corporate climate.

“It is not a policy we support,” he reportedly wrote in an email to staff.