Federal appeals court judges on Monday grilled the government lawyer defending President Trump’s temporary travel ban about whether it discriminated against Muslims solely based on their religion.

The three-judge 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Seattle also sharply questioned whether Trump had retracted his earlier call for a total ban on Muslim immigration.

“Has the president . . . ever said, ‘I said before I want to ban all members of the Islamic faith from entering the United States of America, I was wrong, I have consulted with lawyers, I am now addressing it simply to security?’” asked Senior Circuit Judge Michael Daly Hawkins.

“Yes, Judge Hawkins, he has said several things approaching that,” replied Acting Solicitor General Jeff Wall.

But Neal Katyal, an attorney representing the state of Hawaii in its appeal of the ban, argued Team Trump only took down its call for a total ban from the campaign’s Web site last week.

With Wires