Donald Trump now says his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention featured a call to expand his proposed ban on Muslim immigration to the United States, after the GOP presidential nominee appeared to temper his language on the subject during his remarks.
âI actually donât think itâs a rollback,â Trump told NBCâs Chuck Todd in an interview that aired Sunday morning on âMeet the Press.â âIn fact, you could say itâs an expansion.â
During his speech in Cleveland on Thursday, Trump seemed to tone down his rhetoric, not explicitly saying he would ban Muslim immigration as president, but ban immigration from countries âcompromised by terrorism.â
âWe must immediately suspend immigration from any nation that has been compromised by terrorism until such time as proven vetting mechanisms have been put in place,â Trump said during his address at the Quicken Loans Arena. âWe donât want them in our country.â
Though Trump heavily focused on âIslamic terrorismâ in his address, his section on the ban seemed to deviate from the language of his original plan.
âDonald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our countryâs representatives can figure out what is going on,â read the Trump campaignâs original December press release announcing the proposal.
On NBC, however, Trump didnât directly say whether he would implement an immigration ban on all Muslims, though he did imply that the First Amendmentâs protection of religious liberty wouldnât necessarily apply to a ban on Muslim immigration.
âPeople were so upset when I used the word Muslim,â Trump said. âOh, you canât use the word Muslim. Remember this. And Iâm OK with that, because Iâm talking territory instead of Muslim.â
âOur Constitution is great. But it doesnât necessarily give us the right to commit suicide, OK?â Trump continued. âNow, we have a religious, you know, everybody wants to be protected. And thatâs great. And thatâs the wonderful part of our Constitution. I view it differently.â
Pressed by Todd on whether the ban on immigration from countries âcompromised by terrorismâ would prohibit immigration from historically non-Muslim countries like France and Belgium that have been victim of a number of terrorist attacks in recent years, Trump dodged the question. Instead, he criticized those countriesâ immigration policies.
âItâs their own fault, because theyâve allowed people over years to come into their territory,â Trump said. âAnd thatâs why Brexit happened, OK? Because the U.K. is saying, âWeâre tired of this stuff, whatâs going on, weâre tired of.ââ
Editorâs note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims â 1.6 billion members of an entire religion â from entering the U.S.