06.25.2016
If we’ve learned anything from Donald Trump’s constant flip-flopping on his policies and stances on issues, it’s that whenever he tries to fix an idiotic statement he’s made, he usually just manages to make it far worse. We saw this with his numerous stances on abortion, in which he first stated that women should be punished for terminating pregnancies, and then furiously backpedaled in several different directions once he realized that statement was too inflammatory.
Trump is once again revising one of his policies, and this time it’s a correction to one of the most controversial statements in his campaign – his proposed ban on Muslims. Having once said that all Muslims should be banned from coming into the United States, Trump has now changed it to only forbidding the Muslims coming from “terror states.” These comments come as Trump is at his golf resort in Scotland, a place that he will apparently now be welcoming Muslims to.
CNN reporter Jeremy Diamond heard the words straight from The Donald’s mouth, and reported back on Twitter:
This seems like a major step back from Trump’s 2015 request for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.” Recently, following the tragic mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, Trump called for a complete immigration ban from countries that have a history of terrorism against America. Along with his new comments on Saturday, Trump was noted saying:
“We are going to get rid of a lot of bad dudes who are here. That I can tell you.
I want terrorists out. I want people that have bad thoughts out. I would limit specific terrorist countries and we know who those terrorist countries are.”
Some have said that Trump’s switch from a religious ban to a regional ban actually makes sense, although in actuality Trump is still doing both. He is still deeply discriminating – he is just using softer, more acceptable language to fluff it up. It’s also unclear exactly which countries Trump’s new stance will apply to – there are only three counties of the State Department’s official list of state sponsors of terrorism: Syria, Iran and Sudan. However, Trump probably hasn’t taken into account that terrorist groups often have members in different countries, which can include U.S. allies. But then again, when has Trump ever thought something through?
While Trump is now saying that his ban would only apply to Muslims in terror states, Spokesperson Hope Hicks would not say if non-Muslims from those countries or Muslims living in peaceful countries would be exempt from the ban.
For all the flip-flopping that Trump does, it’s honestly hard to know when to believe him. Regardless, his infamous Muslim ban has been one of the biggest points in his campaign, so we’re sure this isn’t the last we’ll hear about it.