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Bellevue refugee supports Trump travel ban

Washington’s attorney general has filed new legal action to block the new Trump administration travel ban that is scheduled to take effect on March 16.

The original travel ban triggered protests at Sea-Tac airport and was soon blocked by a lawsuit filed by the Washington Attorney General’s Office at the end of January.

Bellevue housing developer Hossein Khorram came to the U.S. 38 years ago at the age of 17 as a refugee from Iran.

“I'm a little disappointed with Attorney General Bob Ferguson interfering with matters of national security,” he said.

Khorram is a big supporter of President Donald Trump and his temporary ban on refugees. Asked how he, a refugee himself, can support it Khorram responded, “It is very difficult. I've had emails from refugees, calls and they are heartbroken and it happened to me and my family too because we're refugees, too.”

Iran remains as one of the six countries in the new travel ban. The others are Libya, Somalia, Syria, Sudan and Yemen; Iraq has now been exempted.

But the attorney general and his team still believe the president's executive order is unconstitutional.

They're going back to Seattle Federal District Judge James Robart to have his restraining order on the original travel ban extended to the new one.

“It's our view that the temporary restraining order that we've already obtained remains in effect and the burden is on the federal government to explain why it does not,” Ferguson said at a news conference today.

While the travel ban is painful, Hossein believes President Trump is doing the right thing.

“It's painful, causes hardship, but what is more important is the security of those that are living here.”