--- title: Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Muslim Entry Ban description: A quick response from the GOP field canonical: https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-07T22:42:39.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T22:27:53.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Muslim Entry Ban og:description: A quick response from the GOP field og:url: https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt431f5d4cc1820f61/698874433c1639500d45b136/donald-trump4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4775 og:image:height: 2686 og:image:alt: Republican 2016 presidential candidates Trump and Bush take their places at their podiums before the start of the first official Republican presidential candidates debate of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign in Cleveland og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Muslim Entry Ban twitter:description: A quick response from the GOP field twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt431f5d4cc1820f61/698874433c1639500d45b136/donald-trump4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 03:47 video:published: 2015-12-08 section: politics topics: presidential campaign, Donald Trump's Muslim comments, ISIS threat, refugee policy, counterterrorism, Muslim Americans, Obama administration response, radical Islamic terrorism genre: news reaction, political commentary tones: critical, forceful, urgent emotions: anger (high), concern (high), defiance (medium) sentiment: negative audience: US voters, political followers, policy observers, Republican primary watchers people: Donald Trump, Barack Obama organizations: ISIL, al-Qaeda, FBI content_suitability: politics [00:01-03:47]; hate [00:01-01:27]; war [01:52-03:47] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Proposed Muslim Entry Ban > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=e3e14f83-a383-46ce-8e9b-b8fe64249491&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: TIME Raw: Presidential Candidates React to Trump's Ban Muslim Comment [Watch (HLS stream): TIME Raw: Presidential Candidates React to Trump's Ban Muslim Comment](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/5RhOTVZO.m3u8) (3:47)  _Published 2015-12-08_ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary A speaker, unidentified in the transcript, responds to Donald Trump's comments about Muslims, calling them outrageous, fascist demagoguery that plays into ISIL's hands and is un-American. The speaker criticizes both Trump's overreaction and President Obama's perceived under-reaction to terrorism. The video closes with the speaker describing their own legislation, a three-year moratorium on refugees from countries where ISIS or al-Qaeda control territory, and calling for a commander in chief focused on radical Islamic terrorism. ## Key points - The speaker calls Donald Trump's comments outrageous, fascist demagoguery that plays right into the hands of ISIL. (00:01) - The speaker says the President stated that America's values must not become the first casualty of the terror threat. (00:07) - The speaker says Muslim American neighbors are the front lines of defense against terrorism. (00:18) - The speaker references a letter by about 1,000 rabbis warning against repeating the nation's 1939 mistake in distinguishing enemies from victims. (00:31) - The speaker argues Trump's overreaction is as dangerous as President Obama's under-reaction. (01:04) - The speaker says they would rather lose without Trump than win with him and wishes he would leave the party. (01:23) - The speaker has introduced Senate legislation for a three-year moratorium on refugees from countries where ISIS or al-Qaeda control substantial territory. (01:52) - The speaker says the FBI told them the Obama administration lacks resources to properly vet refugees for ISIS ties. (02:08) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 01:04] Condemning Trump's comments on Muslims. The speaker calls Trump's remarks fascist, un-American and helpful to ISIL, citing the President and a rabbis' letter. - [01:04 to 01:52] Criticizing both Trump and Obama. The speaker argues Trump's overreaction and Obama's under-reaction are both dangerous and says they would not support Trump as the nominee. - [01:52 to 03:47] Proposing a refugee moratorium. The speaker describes Senate legislation to pause refugees from ISIS and al-Qaeda areas and calls for a focus on radical Islamic terrorism. ## Key quotes - [00:01] Unidentified speaker: "I think Donald Trump's comments are some outrageous, fascist, demagoguery." - [00:18] Unidentified speaker: "our Muslim American neighbors are our front lines of defense here." - [01:04] Unidentified speaker: "Unfortunately I think Donald Trump's over reaction is as dangerous as President Obama's under reaction." - [01:27] Unidentified speaker: "I'd rather lose without Donald Trump than try to win with him." - [02:19] Unidentified speaker: "we need a Commander In Chief who is focused on, on keeping this nation safe" ## Questions this video answers - What does the speaker think of Donald Trump's comments about Muslims? [00:01] - Why does the speaker say Trump's statements are dangerous? [00:55] - How does the speaker compare Trump's reaction to President Obama's? [01:04] - What legislation has the speaker introduced regarding refugees? [01:52] - Why does the speaker say refugee vetting is a concern? [02:08] - What kind of commander in chief does the speaker say the nation needs? [02:19] ## Content suitability - politics [00:01-03:47]: Presidential campaign commentary on Trump's remarks and refugee policy. - hate [00:01-01:27]: Discusses Trump's comments about Muslims and calls them demagoguery and fascist. - war [01:52-03:47]: References the fight against ISIS and al-Qaeda and terrorism threats. by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/) Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:27 PM UTCPublished: Dec 7, 2015 10:42 PM UTC by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/) Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:27 PM UTCPublished: Dec 7, 2015 10:42 PM UTC Several fellow Republican presidential candidates were quick to condemn Donald Trump’s call Monday to end all Muslim entry to the United States. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham was first to respond, calling the statement “downright dangerous” to the United States, and he was quickly followed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie who called it “ridiculous” and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush who called Trump “unhinged.” In a statement Monday afternoon, Trump called for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.” He argued that all Muslims should be considered suspect. “Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life,” Trump said. Appearing on conservative radio host Michael Medved’s show, Christie called Trump’s plan “a ridiculous position and one that won’t even be productive.**“** “This is just more of the outrageous divisiveness that characterizes his every breath and another reason why he is entirely unsuited to lead the United States,” Ohio Gov. John Kasich said in a statement. > [](https://twitter.com/JebBush/status/673990065517891584) > [](https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/674019172800704512) > [](https://twitter.com/DannyEFreeman/status/673990668558032897) > [](https://twitter.com/LindseyGrahamSC/status/673988457295798272) But other Republican candidates withheld their fire from Trump. Speaking to reporters, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz [declined to condemn](https://twitter.com/teddyschleifer/status/673991838370537472) Trump, saying “that is not my policy.” He, like Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul have called for bans on refugees from countries where Islamic extremist groups are active. Paul’s plan went even further, introducing legislation to temporarily ban all visas from most countries with large Muslim populations, along with countries like Russia and North Korea. Ben Carson told reporters there should be no religious test for traveling to the U.S., but said all visitors should be monitored. > [](https://twitter.com/shaqbrewster/status/673996766275117057) ## Transcript [00:01] I think Donald Trump's comments are some [00:03] outrageous, fascist, demagoguery. And I think it plays [00:07] right into the hands of ISIL. Because the President said [00:10] last night, we cannot allow our values to become the [00:14] first casualty of this new, Threat of terror. We [00:18] have to realize what we have in one another, and the [00:20] truth of the matter is our Muslim American neighbors [00:22] are our front lines of defense here. And so, what [00:26] Donald Trump has said I find to be absolutely [00:28] outrageous. It is un- American. There was a letter [00:31] written by about [ UNKNOWN ] About 1, 000. Was it [00:35] 1, 000? Rabbis the other day, that said in 1939, we [00:39] didn't do a very good job as a nation at distinguishing [00:43] between who are enemies are and who the victims of [00:46] our enemies are. And let's hope we're not repeating [00:48] that mistake again in 2015. So, in conclusion, I [00:52] think Donald Trump's statements are the sort of [00:55] demagoguery that sometimes precedes fascism. And I [00:59] think it's outrageous and I think all of us have an [01:01] obligation to speak out against this. Unfortunately I [01:04] think Donald Trump's over reaction is as dangerous as [01:08] President Obama's under reaction. President Obama [01:11] isn't prepared to do anything, which is clearly foolish [01:15] but Donald Trump Trump always plays on everyone's [01:18] worst instincts and fears, and saying we're not gonna [01:20] let a single Muslim into this country is a dangerous [01:23] overreaction. I'd rather lose without Donald Trump [01:27] than try to win with him. I wish he would leave the [01:29] party. I don't care if he runs as an Independent. If we [01:33] lose the 2016 election, so be it. This is not about an [01:36] election. This is about the future of the country and our [01:39] party. You know how you win this war? You side with [01:42] people in the faith who reject this ideology, which is [01:45] 99 %. And you know how you make America great [01:48] again? Tell Donald Trump to go to hell. Well, that is not [01:52] my policy I've introduced legislation in the Senate [01:56] that would put in place a three year moratorium on [02:00] refugees coming from countries where ISIS or [02:02] al- Qaeda control a substantial amount of territory. [02:05] And the reason is that's where the threat is coming [02:08] from. And the Obama administration, the FBI, has told [02:12] us they don't have the resources to properly vet those [02:14] refugees. Refugees to determine whether or not they [02:16] are Isis terrorists. I think that's the approach we should [02:19] take and we need a Commander In Chief who is [02:23] focused on, on keeping this nation [02:27] safe and the way to do so is focusing [02:31] in particular on radical islamic terrorism which is [02:34] exactly what I intend to do. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/"},"headline":"Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Proposed Muslim Entry Ban","datePublished":"2015-12-07T22:42:39.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-13T22:27:53.000Z","description":"A quick response from the GOP field","url":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/","keywords":["Donald Trump","2016 Election","Terrorism","Muslim"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt431f5d4cc1820f61/698874433c1639500d45b136/donald-trump4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Zeke Miller","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt431f5d4cc1820f61/698874433c1639500d45b136/donald-trump4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Republican 2016 presidential candidates Trump and Bush take their places at their podiums before the start of the first official Republican presidential candidates debate of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign in Cleveland","caption":"Republican 2016 presidential candidates Trump and Bush take their places at their podiums before the start of the first official Republican presidential candidates debate of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign in Cleveland","creditText":"Brian Snyder—REUTERS","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/donald-trump/","name":"Donald Trump"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/","name":"Republican Rivals Condemn Donald Trump's Proposed Muslim Entry Ban"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"TIME Raw: Presidential Candidates React to Trump's Ban Muslim Comment","description":"","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/5RhOTVZO/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-12-08T15:47:51.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/5RhOTVZO.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/","duration":"PT3M47S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4139670/donald-trump-muslim-republican/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```