OTTAWA — Justin Trudeau’s new parliamentary secretary for foreign affairs justified the Liberals’ tepid response to the U.S. president’s refugee ban Tuesday by noting that Donald Trump has issued fewer executive orders in his first week than did former president Barack Obama. Andrew Leslie, an Ottawa-area MP and retired Army general, also suggested Canada needs to look after its own interests.

Andrew Leslie speaks to reporters in the House of Commons foyer on June 10, 2016. (Photo: Adrian Wyld/CP) Leslie was asked by reporters if he agreed with Trump’s move to bar Syrian refugees indefinitely from the U.S., place a four-month freeze on accepting other refugees, and bring in a three-month suspension on travel from citizens from seven predominant Muslim countries in Africa and the Middle East. “That’s up to the United States to — to actually decide for themselves,” Leslie responded. “It’s within the legal remit of the president to issue executive orders. “As you may know, now that I’m getting much better briefed on the issue, president Obama issued actually more presidential executive orders and memoranda in his first week than President Trump.” Obama issued five executive orders in his first week after taking office in 2009. He ordered the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facilities, outlawed the use of torture as an interrogation measure, and banned gift from lobbyists. Trump also signed five executive orders in his first week. He weakened Obamacare, fast-tracked environmental reviews for high priority infrastructure projects, and ordered a wall built on the border with Mexico — along with the ban on refugees and travellers from Syria, Sudan, Iran, Libya, Iraq, Somalia and Yemen.

President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, left, and Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly, speaks at the Homeland Security Department in Washington on Wednesday. (Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP via The Canadian Press) Executive orders are legally binding documents that allow the U.S. president to implement policy, without going through Congress, by directing government agencies and departments. Presidential memoranda are similar to executive orders, but they carry less weight and do not need to be published in the Federal Register. In his first week, Obama issued 11 memoranda. Trump issued nine. He used a memorandum, for example, to invite TransCanada to resubmit its application for the Keystone XL pipeline and to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. Leslie, who may be off to the U.S. soon to meet his American counterparts, said everyone needed to “stay calm and carry on.” “The whole idea of standing firm on our values, by all means, but working cooperatively with our biggest friend, largest trading partner is perhaps the wisest approach,” he said. “We will make sure that we take care of our interests — security, trade, a whole host of others — while defending our values,” he added.