In the wake of the latest terrorist attack in France, the White House blasted Republican Newt Gingrich Friday for proposing to deport Muslims who support shariah law.
“Proposals like that, rhetoric like that is un-American by its very definition,” said White House press secretary Josh Earnest. “This is also the worst possible time for leaders or aspiring leaders to suggest that somehow Americans should start turning on one another. That’s exactly what the terrorists want us to do.”
Mr. Gingrich, a close ally of presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump and a former House speaker, said Thursday night after the carnage in Nice, France, that the U.S. should “test every person here who is of a Muslim background, and if they believe in Shariah, they should be deported.”
Shariah is a system of laws spelled out in the Koran and other Islamic holy books, theoretically binding on all Muslims.
Mr. Earnest said Mr. Gingrich “might need to consult his copy of the pocket Constitution.”
“Our nation was founded on the principle that this is a country where people can choose to worship as they please without harassment from the government,” Mr. Earnest said. “That is a principle that is enshrined in the Constitution and one that the president believes is worth protecting.”
He said Americans “expect their leaders to stand up and seek to unify this country in these trying times.”
“That’s certainly going to make us safer. And it certainly is a way that we live up to the values that made this the greatest country in the world,” Mr. Earnest said.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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