Trump: Banning Muslim immigration is 'just a suggestion'
Donald Trump called for "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our representatives can figure out what the hell is going on" during a campaign event?
Well, that proclamation was apparently just a suggestion. In a Fox News Radio interview, Trump slightly backed away from a policy he's stood by for months: A blanket ban on Muslim immigration.
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Trump told Brian Kilmeade: "It's a temporary ban. It hasn't been called for yet. Nobody's done it. This is just a suggestion until we find out what's going on."
And later on FOX News, Trump said: "That's why it was temporary. Sure, I'd back off on it. I'd like to back off on it as soon as possible because, frankly, I'd like to see something happen."
Trump's initial proposal came in the aftermath of two serious terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino. It's since become a widely-cited plank of his campaign, controversial to many people but hugely popular with GOP voters.
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But he's since softened his stance to allow Muslim foreign dignitaries into the country despite his suggested ban. This includes London's new mayor, Sadiq Khan, who outright rejected Trump's hospitality.
Khan told the BBC: "My concern is, he's playing into the hands of extremists who say it's not compatible to be Western and to be mainstream Muslim."
Trump has been consistent in criticizing the current administration's handling of global terrorism. And one week ago, he insisted he'd stick by the ban during the general election.
He told MSNBC: "I really don't know if it hurts me. I don't care if it hurts me. I'm doing the right thing when I do this. Whether it's Muslim or whether it's something else, I have to do the right thing, and that's the way I've been guided."
