Michael Flynn Jr. accompanies his father, Michael Flynn, at Trump Tower on Nov. 17, 2016. | AP Photo Flynn's son says 'Muslim ban' is 'necessary' The son of the national security adviser celebrated the move on Twitter even as the administration rejected the label.

The national security adviser's son took to Twitter on Saturday to defend President Donald Trump's controversial refugee order, twice referring to it as a "Muslim ban" and calling it a "necessary" step.

Michael Flynn Jr., who was released from the transition team after spreading a debunked conspiracy theory about a Washington pizza parlor, was formerly a top adviser to his father. He has a history of spreading conspiracy theories and racially charged comments on Twitter, as recently documented by CNN.


As protests burst out Saturday against Trump’s order, which bars entry to the United States for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, Flynn Jr. took to Twitter to celebrate.

“Making America Great Again! #MuslimBan #saturdaymorning #AmericaFirst @GenFlynn @realDonaldTrump,” he wrote, including the Twitter handles of his father and the president.

The tweet began to circulate widely as the administration adamantly rejected the label “Muslim ban,” which Trump had proposed on the campaign trail but later walked away from. As multiple reporters picked up on Flynn Jr.’s tweet, he deleted it and fired back at CNN’s Jake Tapper, who noted that Flynn Jr.’s description of the order did not match the official Republican line.

“Its [sic] called using a trending hashtag Jake. I realize u have nothing better to do than report on me but keep up the good work #cnn #fakenews,” Flynn Jr. wrote in response.

Still, however, he left up another tweet from Saturday in which he wrote that a “Temporary #MuslimBan” is “necessary.”

After a federal judge blocked part of Trump’s executive order Saturday night, Trump himself took to Twitter to defend “strong borders and extreme vetting.”

Flynn Jr. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.