David Jackson

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — President Trump appeared to lobby (and pressure) an appeals court Wednesday to uphold his proposed travel ban from seven predominantly Muslim nations, arguing that national security is at stake and suggesting that judges sometimes act politically.

"I don't ever want to call a court biased, so I won't call it biased, and we haven't had a decision yet," Trump told a group of sheriffs and police chiefs in discussing the travel ban case pending before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

"But," the president added, "courts seem to be so political and it would be so great for our justice system if they would be able to read a statement and do what's right."

Reading from parts of his order, Trump argued that presidents can restrict immigration in the name of national security.

"Right now, we are at risk because of what's happened," Trump said, referring to a decision by a Seattle-based federal judge to strike down the law. That judge, U.S. District Judge James Robart, was appointed by Republican former President George W. Bush, and faced harsh criticism from Trump after his ruling.

Trump spoke the morning after the San Francisco-based appeals court heard arguments on the order that suspends entry into the United States from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. A variety of organizations sued over the law, saying it is arbitrary and targeted to a specific religion — Islam.

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Earlier on Wednesday, Trump tweeted: "If the U.S. does not win this case as it so obviously should, we can never have the security and safety to which we are entitled. Politics!" He also tweeted he would be "discussing the horrible, dangerous and wrong decision" on his plans.

Speaking later to a meeting of police chiefs and sheriff's organizations, Trump suggested his law may lose at the appeals level. The president said he listened to appeals court arguments Wednesday, and "I couldn't believe, things that really had nothing to do" with the law.

Trump also defended the form of his order, saying it is "so simple and so beautifully written and so perfectly written."

Critics accused Trump of trying to intimidate the appeals court in the travel order case.

"President Trump did not waste the opportunity to bash judges and the opportunity to undermine the importance of judicial decisions," said Tanya Arditi, associate director of communications for the liberal Center for American Progress.

Hours after his speech, Trump again took to Twitter to apparently complain about continuing travel from the seven countries on his banned list: "Big increase in traffic into our country from certain areas, while our people are far more vulnerable, as we wait for what should be EASY D!"

"EASY D" appears to stand for "easy decision" by the appeals court.

However the appeals court rules, the case seems headed for the Supreme Court.

"We're going to take it through the system," Trump told reporters Wednesday. "It's very important."

Also in his speech to law enforcement officers, Trump again pledged to build an anti-migration wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

"The wall is getting designed right now," Trump claimed. "A lot of people say, 'oh, oh, Trump was only kidding with the wall.' I wasn't kidding. I don't kid."