--- title: Ted Cruz Breaks With Donald Trump on Muslim Database description: Ted Cruz broke with Donald Trump Friday when he denounced Trump's comments that he would make Muslims in America register in a database. canonical: https://time.com/4122370/ted-cruz-donald-trump-muslim-database/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-20T16:46:31.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T23:16:10.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Ted Cruz Breaks With Donald Trump on Muslim Database og:description: "I'm not a fan of government registries of American citizens." og:url: https://time.com/4122370/ted-cruz-donald-trump-muslim-database/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4bfb6b187821e2a7/6988719d2dce0180b79e68de/cruz.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks during the Sunshine Summit conference being held at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida, on Nov. 13, 2015 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Ted Cruz Breaks With Donald Trump on Muslim Database twitter:description: "I'm not a fan of government registries of American citizens." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4bfb6b187821e2a7/6988719d2dce0180b79e68de/cruz.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Ted Cruz Breaks With Donald Trump on Muslim Database > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 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. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times 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. ## Video: Watch The Best Quotes By Donald Trump [Watch (HLS stream): Watch The Best Quotes By Donald Trump](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7MzTpVq2.m3u8) (1:21)  _Published 2015-07-23. Donald Trump's Most Ridiculous Quotes_  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Updated: Dec 13, 2023 11:16 PM UTCPublished: Nov 20, 2015 4:46 PM UTC  Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks during the Sunshine Summit conference being held at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida, on Nov. 13, 2015 Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks during the Sunshine Summit conference being held at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida, on Nov. 13, 2015 Joe Raedle—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Updated: Dec 13, 2023 11:16 PM UTCPublished: Nov 20, 2015 4:46 PM UTC Texas Sen. Ted Cruz made a notable break with Donald Trump Friday when he denounced Trump’s comments that he would make Muslims in America register in a database. Cruz has been careful not to attack Trump on the trail, likely because he hopes to scoop up Trump supports if the business mogul drops out of the race. So he was careful to couch his statement by beginning, “I’m a big fan of Donald Trump’s,” [Politico reports](http://www.politico.com/story/2015/11/ted-cruz-donald-trump-muslim-registries-216105). “But I’m not a fan of government registries of American citizens,” Cruz continued. “The First Amendment protects religious liberty, I’ve spent the past several decades defending religious liberty.” Trump stood by his position Thursday, saying that he would “absolutely” [make Muslim Americans register](http://time.com/4121511/donald-trump-muslims-database-terrorism/?xid=tcoshare) in a database as a security measure after the Nov. 13 Paris attacks that left 129 dead. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush also pushed back against Trump’s suggestion of a registry of Muslims. “It’s not a question of toughness. It’s manipulating people’s angst and their fears,” he [said on CNBC’s Squawk Box](http://www.politico.com/story/2015/11/jeb-bush-trump-muslims-216099). “That’s not strength. That’s weakness.” Trump later clarified his thoughts on Twitter, attributing the database idea to a reporter. > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/667777348029292544) **Read Next:** [_Democrats Call Trump’s Muslim Database Comments ‘Shocking’_](http://time.com/4121983/democrats-trump-muslim-database/) ## Transcript Rosie O'Donnell's disgusting, I mean both inside and out. You take a look at her, she's a slob. She talks like a truck driver. So he could have been born in Kenya and gone over to the United States. And everybody wants to be a US citizen. And his grandparents put an ad in saying he was born in the United States. He didn't kill Bin Laden. He gets so much credit for that. Ok excuse me. He had the guts to make that decision. And the genius. Excuse me. Guts. First of all Vince, your grapefruits are no match for my Trump Towers. They're bringing drugs They're bringing crime, they're rapist, and some I assume are good people, and I love the Mexican people. I've had thousands of Mexicans working for me. I sell apartments for millions of dollars to people from Mexico. They love me, they love me. [ CROSSTALK ]. He's a war hero cuz he was captured. I like people that weren't captured, okay? I hate to tell you this. And I see your Senator. What a stiff? What a Stiff? Lindsay Graham. I'm not using the lobbyists, I'm not using donors. I don't care. I'm really rich. 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