Following a night of worldwide protests and a federal judge halting deportations of visa holders under his latest executive order, President Trump defended his “extreme vetting” policy Sunday, pointing to Europe as a warning sign for a future without “strong borders.”

Mr. Trump tweeted his message early Sunday morning:

Our country needs strong borders and extreme vetting, NOW. Look what is happening all over Europe and, indeed, the world - a horrible mess! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2017

He followed that up with another missive on Christians facing execution in the Middle East:

Christians in the Middle-East have been executed in large numbers. We cannot allow this horror to continue! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2017

U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly issued an emergency order Saturday evening stopping authorities from deporting those with valid visas from nations affected by Mr. Trump’s travel ban.

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“There is imminent danger that, absent the stay of removal, there will be substantial and irreparable injury to refugees, visa-holders, and other individuals” from those nations, Donnelly wrote in her stay.

The injunction itself barred U.S. border agents from removing anyone who arrived in the U.S. with a legal visa from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen -- a pause on significant portions of Mr. Trump’s executive order on immigration, signed Friday. The stay also said that anyone with an approved refugee application could not be deported.

But on Sunday, other members of Mr. Trump’s administration also jumped in with a defense of the executive order.

Reince Priebus, Mr. Trump’s chief of staff, assured NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that green card holders will not be affected by the executive order. (On Saturday, contrary to Priebus’ statement, a senior administration official told CBS News that green card holders from those countries would be evaluated on a case-by-case “exemption” basis to see if they would be allowed into the U.S.) He warned, however, that even some U.S. citizens with a record of frequent travel to and from the listed countries could be subjected to more questioning by border patrol agents under the new White House directives.

Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser to the president, also pushed back on critics of Mr. Trump’s swift issuance of executive actions.

“Get used to it,” Conway tweeted Saturday, promising that “he’s just getting started.”