Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush called for fellow Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to reconsider his “unhinged” proposal to ban all Muslim immigration to the country during Thursday night’s Republican presidential debate.
When asked if widespread backlash has made him reconsider the proposal, Trump simply responded, “no” as the audience applauded. Bush fired back, saying talk about banning an entire religion is a poor reflection of the country on the world stage.
“We don’t have to have refugees come to the country, but all Muslims? Seriously! What kind of signal does that send to the rest of the world that the United States is a serious player in creating peace?” Bush responded.
Fox Business debate moderator Neil Cavuto cut in to remind Bush that Trump’s poll numbers in South Carolina soared after he announced the proposal.
“Are you saying that all those people who agree with Mr. Trump are unhinged?” Cavuto pressed Bush.
“No, not at all. Absolutely not. I can see why people are angry and scared because this President has created a condition where our national security has weakened dramatically, I totally get that,” Bush said.
He continued: “We’re running for presidency of the United States here…You cannot make rash statements and expect the rest of the world to respond as though, well, it’s just politics. Every time we send signals like, this we send a signal of weakness, not strength. It was an unhinged statement, which is why I’m asking him to consider changing his views.”
