not_debt

Yes, he is recorded on video as saying it, the most mentioned quote being: "Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what the hell is going on."

The 1951 Refugee Convention, in particular Article 3.

Legal issues are well beyond the area of my expertise, so I have no idea if Trump's recent actions contravene this per se, but the point is that we do have some obligation to help refugees under international law.

I work for Microsoft and while I am not personally affected by this executive order, we all received an email which stated that there are a number of Microsoft employees who are.

So it's no surprise that Microsoft are coming out on the side of their employees, and indeed on the benefits of immigration in general - I know from being tangentially involved in some of the hiring process that it's exceedingly difficult to fill certain positions without looking abroad, as the talent is spread globally.

Two counterpoints:

1. Rudy Giuliani is on record as saying that Trump asked how to 'legally' implement the Muslim ban he promised in the campaign trail, and that this executive order is the result. Even if the end result isn't a blanket ban on all Muslims, the intent remains.

2. International law, and treaties that the US have signed, oblige them to shoulder some of the collective responsibility for refugee resettlement in the international community. Banning refugees based on their country of origin works against that, and may well be illegal.