Source: http://www.brennancenter.org/print/17382
Timestamp: 2019-04-25 06:30:47+00:00

Document:
Donald Trump’s vitriolic anti-Muslim campaign rhetoric was a preview for an unprecedentedly Islamophobic administration. In a new analysis, the Brennan Center identifies how the president and his White House staff and advisors have targeted Muslims through both speech and policy, tangibly harming the American Muslim community, in at least five forms: the use of anti-Muslim rhetoric; the elevation of Islamophobic staff members to key positions in the White House; the ban on visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the country; the goal of making vetting procedures "extreme" for potential visitors and immigrants; and a lack of response to the rise in hate crimes targeted at Muslims and other groups.
This report examines the Trump presidency through the lens of its impact on American Muslims. During the campaign, President Donald Trump trafficked in anti-Muslim rhetoric, and proposed laws and policies targeting American Muslim communities. The first few months of his administration have seen sustained attempts to put those proposals into action. Within a week of taking office, Trump issued an executive order banning entry to the U.S. by travelers from seven Muslim countries, along with all refugees. Stymied by court rulings halting implementation of the order, he revised the ban to remove its obviously discriminatory provisions (such as a de facto exemption for Christians), but the latest version of the ban has also been enjoined by federal courts. In the meantime, the administration has moved to develop a system of “extreme vetting” that is likely to apply with particular intensity to Muslim travelers.
Upon taking office, Trump quickly installed notorious Islamaphobes — including Steve Bannon, Michael Flynn, and Sebastian Gorka — in the White House. Trump’s own blatantly anti-Muslim rhetoric has emboldened people to act on their prejudices, and hate crimes against Muslims have soared. In sum, Trump has created the most Islamophobic administration our country has seen.
Trump’s actions have galvanized a robust resistance movement, with thousands of people taking to the streets and airports across the country to protest his ban on Muslims entering the country. His personnel choices have been criticized across the political spectrum, as has his silence on attacks on Muslims. All this is heartening, but the continuity between Trump’s policies and those of his predecessors must inform efforts both to push back against his blatant discrimination against Muslims and to shape new laws and policies that ensure equality and security for all Americans.
He called for a prohibition on Muslims entering the country, as described in more detail below.
Trump has carried his suspicion of American Muslims into office. Most recently, his administration signaled that it planned to rebrand the government’s program on Countering Violent Extremism, or CVE, to focus solely on Islamic extremism.8 Even when CVE was ostensibly targeted at all forms of violent extremism, it was highly controversial because in practice it was directed mainly at Muslims and provided ample opportunities for law enforcement to spy on these communities.9 Removing the veneer of neutrality would only increase the stigma associated with CVE and the likelihood that it would be used by law enforcement agents as an intelligence gathering tool.
These theories justify aggressive military action abroad and the repression of American Muslims at home through invasive surveillance, religious and ethnic profiling, and the jettisoning of fundamental constitutional protections for religious freedom. Individuals holding these once fringe views now occupy central roles in the Trump administration and appear to have a major hand in shaping blatantly discriminatory policies such as the Muslim ban and the “extreme vetting” procedures being developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Flynn has been fired, and there are rumblings that Bannon and perhaps even Gorka may be on their way out — all for reasons apparently unrelated to their Islamophobia. Most recently, Bannon was removed from the National Security Council. But two members of Trump’s cabinet also have troubling records. Mike Pompeo, the new Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, has appeared on Gaffney’s radio program over a dozen times in the past four years and has falsely claimed that “Islamic advocacy organizations and many mosques across America” do not condemn terrorism and are “potentially complicit” in “extremism.”23 Attorney General Jeff Sessions has a long record of hyping alleged threats from Muslim immigration.24 Periodic staff changes aside, Trump appears to have built a team characterized by its determination to view Islam itself as a threat to the United States.
Exactly a week after his inauguration, Trump took the first step in delivering on his campaign promise of a “complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.”25 He signed an executive order banning the nationals of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the country; the order also halted the entry of refugees for 120 days, while barring Syrian refugees indefinitely.26 The order applied even to legal permanent residents, many of whom had lived in the United States for years, as well as students and others holding valid visas. Evidence of the intent to bar Muslims was found on the face of the order, which allowed exemptions for religious minorities from the seven Muslim countries — that is, non-Muslims.
Federal courts quickly stopped implementation of the order. A second version of the Muslim ban was issued on March 6, 2017.27 This time, legal permanent residents and those holding valid visas were exempt. Iraq was dropped from the list of countries covered by the ban and the explicit preference for non-Muslims was removed. The new rule did not pass muster with the courts either, with two federal courts blocking the government from implementing key parts.
Both the Hawaii and Maryland decisions were entered in preliminary proceedings where the courts were asked to preliminarily judge the likelihood that challenges to Trump’s order would succeed. Other courts have looked at the same statements by Trump and his advisers and nonetheless allowed the executive order to stand.35 The decisions enjoining the orders are currently being appealed, and ultimately the matter will likely be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Soon after taking office, Trump seized the opportunity to begin carrying out this campaign promise, incorporating into the first travel ban executive order a requirement that a new vetting process be developed. While the bans have been stayed for now, the work on the vetting procedures appears to be continuing apace, and the clues that have emerged paint a picture of a system custom-made to discriminate against Muslims.
Recent reports suggest the extreme vetting procedures may be instituted for travelers from a number of countries, including many of America’s closest allies; these procedures could include, as a precondition for receiving even a visitor visa, requirements that applicants show immigration officials the contacts in their phones and reveal their social media handles and passwords.42 And while the policy may be facially applicable to visitors from all countries, the focus on ideological issues that are often associated with Islam means that it is almost certain to be disproportionately targeted at Muslims.
In addition, many of the proposed tests are likely to be ineffective. As a former Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service has pointed out, ideological tests do not accurately predict how people will actually behave.50 Likewise, demands for access to would-be travelers’ cell phones will inevitably drive bad actors to change their practices by buying “clean” phones or undertaking other measures, undermining any possible utility of the initiative. These tests are therefore likely to be highly counterproductive, undermining the historical tradition of the U.S. as a pluralistic, welcoming country without making Americans any safer.
By contrast, on September 17, 2001 — six days after the attacks of September 11 — George W. Bush visited an Islamic Center in Washington, D.C. to meet with American Muslim leaders. He gave a speech titled “Islam is Peace,” lauding the contributions of American Muslims and urging Americans to treat each other with respect. In the following days, anti-Muslim hate crimes dropped by a substantial margin as compared to the days before the speech.62 While Trump may not be responsible for every incident of hate and intolerance that occurs in his America, history shows that words do matter.
Well before the 100-day mark of his presidency, President Trump and his associates have shown themselves willing to turn anti-Muslim rhetoric and policy ideas into action. We can anticipate more measures focusing on these communities, some of which may be obvious and overt (such as the registry he once suggested), while others will likely be more insidious and harder to expose (such as increased surveillance of Muslim communities). In order to ensure safety, liberty and justice for all Americans, we must keep a keen watch and stand ready to oppose laws, polices and practices animated by prejudice against Muslims.
2 Theodore Schleifer, “Donald Trump: ‘I think Islam hates us’,” CNN, March 10, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/09/politics/donald-trump-islam-hates-us/ .
4 Lauren Carroll, “Fact-checking Trump’s claim that thousands in New Jersey cheered when World Trade Center tumbled,” Politifact.com, November 22, 2015, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/nov/22/donald-tr... .
5 Kristina Cooke and Joseph Ax, “FBI to Trump: You’re wrong about Muslims reporting extremist threats,” Reuters, June 16, 2016, http://www.businessinsider.com/r-us-officials-say-american-muslims-do-re... .
6 Trip Gabriel, “Donald Trump Says He’d ‘Absolutely’ Require Muslims to Register,” New York Times, November 20, 2015, https://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/11/20/donald-trump-say... .
7 David Sklansky, “Japanese Internment Case Not ‘Good Law’,” Stanford Law School Blogs, November 18, 2016, https://law.stanford.edu/2016/11/18/korematsu-is-not-good-law/ .
9 Faiza Patel and Megan Koushik, Countering Violent Extremism, Brennan Center for Justice, 2017, 9-10.
10 “Backgrounder: The President’s Quotes on Islam,” White House Archives, accessed April 11, 2017, https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/ramadan/islam.html .
11 “Hate Crimes Timeline,” Human Rights Campaign, accessed April 11, 2017, http://www.hrc.org/resources/hate-crimes-timeline;  “George H.W. Bush on Discrimination Against Muslims in White House Question-and-Answer Session,” Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs at Georgetown University, accessed April 11, 2017, https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/quotes/george-h-w-bush-on-discrimin... .
13 Michael German and Faiza Patel, “What Does it Mean to Designate the Muslim Brotherhood a Foreign Terrorist Organization?”, Just Security, January 26, 2017, https://www.justsecurity.org/36826/designate-muslim-brotherhood-foreign-... .
15 Andrew Kaczynski, “Michael Flynn in August: Islamism is a ‘vicious cancer’ in body of all Muslims that ‘has to be excised’,” CNN, November 22, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/22/politics/kfile-michael-flynn-august-speech/;  Allegra Kirkland, “5 Points on Trump’s Anti-Muslim National Security Adviser Michael Flynn,” TalkingPointsMemo.com, November 18, 2016, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/fivepoints/michael-flynn-trump-national-sec... .
16 Laura Stampler, “Trump’s Deputy Assistant, Sebastian Gorka, Has Frequently Denounced Islam,” Teen Vogue, February 22, 2017, http://www.teenvogue.com/story/trumps-deputy-assistant-sebastian-gorka-h...  Allegra Kirkland, “How did Sebastian Gorka Go From The Anti-Muslim Fringe To White House Aide?,” TalkingPointsMemo.com, February 9, 2017, http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/sebastian-gorka-washington-experts-dc-an... .
19 Faiza Patel, Matthew Duss, and Amos Toh, Foreign Law Bans: Legal Uncertainties and Practical Problems, Brennan Center for Justice, 2013, 6-7.
23 CIA Director Mike Pompeo, speaking on H. 3258, on June 11, 2013, 113th Cong., 1st sess. Congressional Record 159.
26 Executive Order 13769 of January 27, 2017, Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States, Federal Register 82, no. 20 (February 1, 2017): 8977, https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-02-01/pdf/2017-02281.pdf .
27 Executive Order 13780 of March 6, 2017, Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States, Federal Register 82, no. 45 (March 9, 2017): 13209, https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-03-09/pdf/2017-04837.pdf .
28 “Donald J. Trump Statement” (see note 25 above).
29 Schleifer, “Donald Trump: ‘I think Islam hates us’” (see note 2 above).
30 Mark Hensch and Jesse Byrnes, “Trump: ‘Frankly, we’re having problems with the Muslims,” The Hill, March 22, 2016, http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/273857-trump-fran... .
31 Daniel Strauss, “Trump defends proposal for Muslim ban as call for ‘extreme vetting’,” Politico, October 9, 2016, http://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/2016-presidential-debate-donald-tr... .
33 State of Hawai’i and Ismail Elshikh v. Donald J. Trump, et al., No. 219 Civ. 00050 (D.Haw Mar. 15, 2017).
34 International Refugee Assistance Project, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al., TDC-17-0361 (D. Md. Mar. 15, 2017) (memorandum opinion).
35 Linda Sarsour, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al., No. 1:17 Civ. 00120 (E.D. Va. Mar. 24, 2017) (memorandum opinion); Arghavan Louhghalam, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al., No. 1:17 Civ. 10154 (D. Mass. Feb. 3, 2017).
36 Jeremy Diamond, “Trump proposes values test for would-be immigrants in fiery ISIS speech,” CNN, August 15, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/14/politics/donald-trump-isis-fight/ .
38 Deborah Amos, “Trump Backers Want Ideology Test for Extreme Vetting,” NPR, February 4, 2017, http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/02/04/513289953/trump-backers... .
42 Meckler, “Trump Administration” (see note 39 above).
43 Amos, “Trump Backers” (see note 38 above); Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(3)(D)(i) (1952).
44 Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(3)(C)(iii) (1952).
45 Patel and Koushik, “Countering Violent Extremism,” 9-10 (see note 9 above).
46 Lauren Said-Moorhouse and Ryan Browne, “Donald Trump wants ‘extreme vetting’ of immigrants. What is the US doing now?,” CNN, August 16, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/16/politics/how-us-vets-immigrants-donald-tru...  “How Long Does it Take for an Immigrant to Legally Come to the United States?,” American Immigration Center, last modified December 12, 2011, https://www.us-immigration.com/us-immigration-news/us-immigration/how-lo... .
47 Said-Moorhouse and Browne, “Donald Trump wants ‘extreme vetting’”.
52 “CAIR-Sacramento Urges FBI to Probe Hate Vandalism Targeting Davis Mosque,” CAIR, last modified January 23, 2017, https://www.cair.com/press-center/press-releases/14033-cair-sacramento-u... .
53 Rachel Revesz, “U.S. Islamophobia: Threats and acts of vandalism against mosques double so far in 2017,” Independent, March 15, 2017, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-mosques-threats-doub... .
54 “Update: More Than 400 Incidents of Hateful Harassment and Intimidation Since the Election,” Southern Poverty Law Center, last modified November 15, 2016, https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2016/11/15/update-more-400-incidents... .
56 Molly Longman, “Anti-Islam note leaves Des Moines community shaken,” Des Moines Register, March 20, 2017, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/03/20/anti-islam-not... .
57 Holly Yan, Kristina Sgueglia, and Kylie Walker, “‘Make America White Again’: Hate speech and crimes post-election,” CNN, December 22, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/10/us/post-election-hate-crimes-and-fears-trnd/ .
58 “Editorial: Trump’s silence on deadly Olathe shooting is disquieting,” Kansas City Star, February 27, 2017, http://www.kansascity.com/opinion/editorials/article135323049.html .
60 “Donald J. Trump Statement” (see note 25 above).
61 Brian Levin, Special Status Report: Hate Crime in the United States, Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism, 2016, 33.
July 17, 2016: “ e Republican Ticket: Trump and Pence,” CBS News, July 17, 2016, http://www.cbsnews.com/  news/60-minutes-trump-pence-republican-ticket/.
August 15, 2016: John Santucci and Veronica Stracqualursi, “Donald Trump Proposes ‘Extreme Vetting’ for Immigrants, With Ideological Screening Test,” ABC News, August 15, 2016, http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/donald-trump-  proposes-extreme-vetting-immigrants-ideological-screening/ story?id=41392682.
October 9, 2016: Kim Hjelmgaard, “Analysis: Trump’s Muslim ban ‘morphs’ into ‘extreme vetting,’” USA Today, October 10, 2016, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/  politics/2016/10/10/trump-muslim-ban-morphs-into- extreme-vetting-clinton-presidential-debate/91844000/.
February 7, 2017: Alexander Smith, “U.S. Visitors May Have to Hand Over Social Media Passwords: DHS,” NBC News, February 8, 2017, http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/  us-visitors-may-have-hand-over-social-media-passwords- kelly-n718216.
to identify population groups for tougher visa screening,” Reuters, March 23, 2017, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-  usa-immigration-visas-exclusive-idUSKBN16U12X.
April 4, 2017: Laura Meckler, “Trump Administration Considers Far-Reaching Steps for ‘Extreme Vetting,’” e Wall Street Journal, April 4, 2017, https://www.wsj.com/  articles/trump-administration-considers-far-reaching-steps- for-extreme-vetting-1491303602?mod=e2tw.

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