Advocacy group slams Trump for Muslim database comments
An influential Muslim advocacy group in the United States has voiced anger over the remarks by US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump who called for a database to track Muslims across the country.
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The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement on Thursday night condemning Trump for “Islamophobic and unconstitutional” comments targeting American Muslims, calling the remarks provocative and saying it will create a climate of hostility in society.
The group also slammed presidential hopeful Ben Carson, who on Thursday compared some of the fleeing Syrian refugees to "rabid dogs" and warned that it would be "foolish" to allow such people to enter the US.
"If there's a rabid dog running around in your neighborhood, you're probably not going to assume something good about that dog," Carson said during an election campaign stop in Mobile, Alabama.
Republican frontrunner Trump on Thursday said he would be open to having a “Muslim database” in America for security reasons, two days after he said that the US would have "absolutely no choice" but to close down some mosques.
On Thursday night, Trump doubled down on his previous remarks when asked by NBC News if he would create a national database to register all Muslims living in the US to protect the country against terrorism. “I would certainly implement that, absolutely.”
Trump's comments came in the wake of the Paris attacks that left at least 132 people dead and hundreds more injured on November 13.
Trump’s Republican presidential rivals, including former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Ohio Governor John Kasich, also criticized the real estate mogul for making controversial comments. Bush called them "just wrong."
"It's manipulating people's angst and their fears," he said. "That's not strength. That's weakness."
Kasich said the statement proved Trump was not worthy of becoming US president.
"The idea that someone would have to register with the federal government because of their religion strikes against all that we have believed in our nation’s history," Kasich said in a statement.
Under fire from both Republicans and Democrats, Trump on Friday tried to deflect criticism by saying that the idea of creating a mandatory database to track Muslims was not his.
“I didn’t suggest a database — a reporter did,” Trump tweeted. “We must defeat Islamic terrorism & have surveillance, including a watch list, to protect America.”
