Has Trump shifted his stance on banning Muslims from US?
Donald Trump redefined the parameters of a temporary ban on all Muslims entering the United States (he first called for in December), saying Sunday there should be 鈥渆xtreme vetting鈥� of all persons from 鈥渢error鈥� states.
When asked about the policy on CBS鈥檚 鈥�60 Minutes鈥� by Lesley Stahl Sunday, on the eve of the Republican National Convention, Mr. Trump said, "We鈥檙e gonna do ."
鈥淭here are territories and terror states and terror nations that we're not gonna allow the people to come into our country. And we're gonna have a thing called 鈥榚xtreme vetting,'"the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said in the interview, with Mike Pence, his running mate and the governor of Indiana, next him. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e gonna come in, and we鈥檙e gonna know where they came from and who they are.鈥�
Mr. Pence 鈥� who tweeted in December Trump鈥檚 original policy was 鈥渙ffensive鈥� and 鈥渦nconstitutional鈥� 鈥撀爐old Ms. Stahl he is now 鈥渃omfortable鈥� with it.
Trump and Pence鈥檚 revised proposal is in line with the views of other Republican heavyweights such as former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus. Contrary to former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney鈥檚 assertion that Trump doesn鈥檛 represent Republicans, this unified view, as well as a poll just before the attack in Nice, France, shows Trump鈥檚 policy does.
"If it was true that Trump did not represent Republicans broadly defined, you would think Republicans would look different; they don't," Douglas McAdam, a sociology professor at Stanford University who studies American politics, told Reuters. 鈥淗e seems to be resonating with Republicans generally."
Trump first called for a 鈥�total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States鈥澛爄n December, five days after the shootings in San Bernardino, Calif.
In June, the day after the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, it was unclear in a policy speech Trump gave in Manchester, N.H., if he softened or strengthened the policy. He called for a temporary ban on "certain people coming from certain horrible 鈥� where you have tremendous terrorism in the world, you know what those places are.鈥� The Washington Post鈥檚 Jenna Johnson wrote that 鈥渁t the time, it appeared that Trump was to include more people, not limiting its scope.鈥澛�
Trump鈥檚 national finance chair Steven Mnuchin said two weeks later, referring to the speech, that the proposed ban isn鈥檛 about religious discrimination.
"It is about terrorism,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is about Muslims from countries that support terrorism.鈥�
On Sunday, Trump then revised the parameters of his policy further on 鈥�60 Minutes,鈥� which aired hours after Mr. Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, told CNN Trump has 鈥減ivoted鈥� from his proposed ban on Muslims.
Priebus said 鈥渢here is not religious test on the table. Trump has called for a temporary ban on immigration from countries that harbor and train terrorists until the US has a better vetting system, Priebus told CNN.
The policy shift comes days after Mr. Gingrich, considered a frontrunner to be Trump鈥檚 running mate before the presumptive nominee chose Pence, called for all Muslims in the US to be tested for their beliefs.
Gingrich said Thursday the US 鈥渟hould frankly test every person here who is of a Muslim background, and if they believe in Sharia, they should be deported.鈥�
鈥淪haria is incompatible with Western civilization,鈥� he said, on Fox News鈥檚 鈥淗annity.鈥�
In a Facebook chat Friday, Gingrich said his comments were not "about targeting a particular religion," but "this is about looking for certain characteristics that we have learned painfully time after time involve killing people."
He added that "if you are a practicing Muslim and you believe deeply in your faith, but you're also loyal to the United States and you believe in the Constitution, you should have your rights totally completely protected within the Constitution."
President Obama, without naming Gingrich, said Friday the call to expel Muslims who believe in Sharia law is "repugnant."
But a Reuters/Ipsos online poll conducted in the month before the attack in Nice suggests not all Americans agree with Obama. Thirty-seven percent of Americans, of which 58 percent are Trump supporters, said they have a "somewhat unfavorable" or "very unfavorable" view of Islam.
The poll shows 78 percent of Trump supporters and 36 percent of Hillary Clinton supporters said that when compared to other religions, Islam was more likely to encourage acts of terrorism.
This report contains material from the Associated Press and Reuters.聽
