Vicki Needham of The Hill offers this glimpse:
A top Senate Republican called Donald Trump’s call to ban Muslims from entering the United States a “huge mistake” that would fuel terror recruitment in the United States.
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that the move could damage vital alliances in the region.
“I think this sends the wrong message to people that have to be part of our partnership for a solution,” Burr said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
“Yes, it does serve as fuel [for recruitment].”
Indeed; it’s a point Lalo Alcaraz made quite clearly last week.
The White House denounced Donald Trump’s remarks as disqualifying, and Carol E. Lee of the Wall Street Journal is anxious to tie Hillary Clinton to that condemnation. Perhaps Mr. Burr should take note; as the former Secretary of State reminded:
“Some of the other Republican candidates are saying that his latest comments have gone too far. But the truth is many of them have also said extreme things about Muslims. Their language may be more veiled than Trump, but their ideas aren’t so different.”
And this is the problem. It isn’t just a question of Donald Trump as a Daa’ish recruitment poster; it’s also a question of whether or not the man is capable of being president. The disrespect he shows the Constitution certainly suggests otherwise, but even Jeb Bush is on the bandwagon, catering to the right-wing disdain for the American promise and dream: “You’re a Christian. You can prove you’re a Christian. I think you can prove it. If you can’t prove it, you err on the side of caution.”
All any of these Republican candidates want is the job of protecting and preserving the Constitution of the United States of America. Do any of them deserve it?
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Image note: Detail of cartoon by Lalo Alcaraz, via Daily Kos, 9 December 2015.
Fabian, Jordan. “Obama aide: Trump’s comments disqualify him from presidency”. The Hill. 8 December 2015.
Lee, Carol E. “White House, Hillary Clinton United in Effort to ‘Disqualify’ Donald Trump”. Washington Wire. The Wall Street Journal. 10 December 2015.
Needham, Vicki. “GOP senator: Trump’s Muslim ban comments a ‘huge mistake'”. The Hill. 13 December 2015.
Stokols, Eli. “Jeb Bush open to allowing some vetted Syrian refugees”. Politico. 17 November 2015.
This Is 