Doug Stanglin

USATODAY

President Trump kicked off his first day of vacation in Mar-a-Lago on Saturday morning with a set of stinging Tweets deriding the "so-called judge" that overturned his travel ban and declaring the "ridiculous" ruling would be overturned. He returned to the subject later in the day, calling the judge's ruling a "terrible" decision and warning that "many very bad and dangerous people" might enter the country.

The first tweet from the Winter White House rolled out at 7:59 a.m., even as federal departments and agencies moved to comply with U.S. District Senior Judge James Robart's temporary restraining order on the president's ban.

"When a country is no longer able to say who can, and who cannot , come in & out, especially for reasons of safety &.security - big trouble!" Trump tweeted.

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Seven minutes later, Trump moved to put the issue in context, albeit within 140 characters: "Interesting that certain Middle-Eastern countries agree with the ban. They know if certain people are allowed in it's death & destruction!"

After a six-minute pause, he hurled a personal zinger at the judge for the Friday night order that brought the travel ban to a screeching halt.

"The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!" Trump declared.

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The tirade against the judge, who was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2004, was reminiscent of comments Trump, as a candidate, made last year against U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who was overseeing a lawsuit against Trump University.

Trump questioned Curiel's impartiality in the case because of his Mexican heritage. He called the Indiana-born Curiel a "very hostile judge" with "an inherent conflict of interest."

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It was not immediately clear if Trump's Saturday morning tweets amounted to a full-scale attack on the third branch of government, or was just a quick media tease before breakfast.

After all, by 8:39 a.m., the president had moved on to slapping around The New York Times for its "fake news" and "bad and inaccurate coverage" before returning to his tried-and-true mantra: in ALL CAPS: "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"

Trump's blast drew an immediate rebuke from Senate Minority leader Charles Schumer, of New York, who took to Twitter himself to say that the president’s criticism “shows a disdain for an ind. judiciary that doesn’t always bend to his wishes & a continued lack of respect for the Constitution.”

Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democratic member of the Judiciary Committee and the longest-serving member in the Senate, said Trump's "hostility toward the rule of law is not just embarassing, it is dangeorus."

He said the the president was "attempting to bully and disparage" a federal judge" and "seems intent on precipitating a constitutional crisis."

Undeterred, Trump weighed in again at 3:44 p.m., after a trip to the golf course: "What is our country coming to when a judge can halt a Homeland Security travel ban and anyone, even with bad intentions, can come into U.S.?"

And then he followed up with: "Because the ban was lifted by a judge, many very bad and dangerous people may be pouring into our country. A terrible decision."

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