Sarah Palin Endorses Donald Trump’s Anti-Muslim Bigotry

Sarah Palin has joined such luminaries as Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingraham, and former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke in endorsing Donald Trump's anti-Muslim immigration plan.

Sarah Palin Meets With Donald Trump In New York During Her Bus Tour

Former Alaska Governor and Republican Vice-Presidential candidate, and current gadfly trying to sell books and maintain her political relevance Sarah Palin has backed Donald Trump’s call to ban Muslim immigration into the United States for some unspecified period of time:

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin says she supports Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s call for a ban on admitting Muslims into the U.S.

“Herd mentality [is] running rampant with hypocritical and/or naïve pundits trying to crush Donald Trump because he’s committed to clobbering the bad guys, and putting the good guys first,” she wrote on her Facebook page.

“Trump’s temporary ban proposal is in the context of doing all we can to force the Feds to acknowledge their lack of strategy to deal with terrorism,” Palin continued. “A broken system allowed terrorists to come to our home and slaughter Americans. A bold, non-politician candidate calls for a pause in this flaw bureaucratic program so it can be fixed, to make sure it doesn’t happen again. That’s common sense, which is why the media and spineless pundits attack it.”

Palin said the danger of jihadist terrorism makes Trump’s proposal an attractive solution for preventing future bloodshed.

“When information shows someone comes to America after being in a radical Islamic stronghold, and embraces the death cult’s ideology that mandates butchering the innocents — then we are right in calling for shucking the political correctness that is fundamentally transforming America, and finally putting the safety of Americans first,” she wrote.

“They have no plan to reform our flawed immigration vetting process,” Palin said of the Obama administration.

“They cannot even utter the term ‘Islamic fundamentalism’ [and] they will not declare war on ISIS,” she added.”While the media twists and turns words, conservatives who propose action to combat the real threat facing America are demonized with the namby-pamby milquetoast politicians who get a pass to go along their unaccountable merry way.”

Palin called on everyday Americans to disregard the Obama administration’s criticism of Trump’s plan.

“Ignore the White House as it spews talking point rhetoric accusing Trump (thus suggesting all who question their wrongheadedness) of being ‘un-American,’ ” the former Alaska governor said.

While most prominent Republicans and conservative pundits have condemned Trump’s idea, Palin joins others on the right such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Ann Coulter, and Laura Ingraham who have either wholeheartedly endorsed Trump’s proposal or argued that he ‘has a point’ and that others on the right should not be joining Democrats and “the media” in attacking Trump. In Palin’s case, it also continues a mutual admiration society that has developed between Trump and Palin in recent months, with Palin making positive comments about Trump at random times through the Facebook page that now seems to be her primary means of communicating from her Alaskan redoubt with whatever is left of her supporters while Trump openly courts those same supporters. As National Review’s Jim Gerghaty pointed out, this new relationship is somewhat odd given Trump’s history of making critical, often disparaging comments about Palin in the past, but given Trump’s long history of inconsistency and flip-flopping I suppose it isn’t entirely surprising either. Indeed, as Gerghaty noted at the time, Trump had already won over a significant portion of Palin’s fan base early in this campaign, and while she has not endorsed him formally, Palin certainly seems to be giving Trump her blessing even to the point of praising an idea that is so obviously bigoted and nonsensical that practically no right-minded conservative is supporting it at this point.

It’s not clear what influence Sarah Palin even has inside the Republican Party at this point, so her decision to get behind Trump like this may not end up having much of an impact at all. Unlike four years ago, there was no real effort by anyone to try to convince Palin to run for President, for example, and she never really expressed any interest in doing so. Of course, that last part isn’t surprising since Palin seems to be enjoying her life as a D-List celebrity far too much to get back into the world of retail politics which requires actual work and requires one to do more than pontificate from a Facebook page while hiding out in Alaska. Perhaps these Trump comments are her effort to throw herself back into the political conversation, but I’m not sure why any sane person would support something as obviously bigoted as Trump’s plan as a way of reintroducing themselves to voters. But then, Palin has always been inexplicable and irrational so I suppose it all makes sense to her somehow.

Incidentally, Sarah Palin wasn’t the only former Republican candidate for office to endorse Trump’s immigration plan yesterday:

A former imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, who once attended a Holocaust denial conference organised by Iran’s former hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, came to Donald Trump’s defence on Tuesday, saying the Republican frontrunner was under fire because his words threatened a “pro-Israel” US foreign policy

David Duke told his own radio show that the billionaire property mogul and TV reality star was being attacked by Jews.

“The Jewish knives are coming out on Donald Trump,” said Mr Duke, who has previously stood as a presidential candidate for both the Democratic and Republican parties and has a track record of voicing anti-Semitic views: “How come it’s against American values to want to preserve the heritage of the country? We’re overwhelmingly a Christian country and overwhelmingly a European country.”

Such support is potentially embarrassing for Mr Trump in the run-up to a planned visit to Israel, where he expects to meet Benjamin Netanyahu, the country’s prime minister, according to remarks the candidate made to a gathering of Jewish Republicans in Washington last week.

Mr Duke’s expression of solidarity with Mr Trump’s anti-Muslim rhetoric also jarred with his attendance in 2006 at a “scientific conference” in Tehran effectively denying the Holocaust organised by Mr Ahmadinejad, Iran’s then president and a hardline Islamist who declared the murder of six million Jews by the Nazis in the Second World War “a myth”.

Mr Duke accepted an invitation to attend the conference after Mr Ahmadinejad had earned international infamy over a string of hostile remarks about Israel, which he said should “vanish from the pages of time”. The same comment was also translated as meaning Israel should be“wiped off the map“.

Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, and David Duke. Those are some great endorsements you’ve lined up there Mr. Trump.

FILED UNDER: *FEATURED, 2016 Election, Terrorism, US Politics, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. Mikey says:

    Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, and David Duke. Those are some great endorsements you’ve lined up there Mr. Trump.

    You say that sarcastically. Trump’s adherents won’t.

  2. gVOR08 says:

    Water…wet…

  3. CSK says:

    I’ve been saying this all along: The Palin Fan Club is now the Trump Fan Club, only much more angry and much less rational than before.

  4. Pete S says:

    A former imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, who once attended a Holocaust denial conference organised by Iran’s former hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, came to Donald Trump’s defence on Tuesday, saying the Republican frontrunner was under fire because his words threatened a “pro-Israel” US foreign policy
    David Duke told his own radio show that the billionaire property mogul and TV reality star was being attacked by Jews.

    How does this even make sense? Bigotry against Muslims is under attack for being anti-Israel? I keep waiting for Trumps’s 30% to come out and say “even we aren’t stupid enough to buy into this”. I guess I will keep waiting…..

  5. Scott says:

    I thought she was too quiet. Just when I thought she was gone she couldn’t resist opening her trap.

  6. Tyrell says:

    The news media is using Trump as a distraction and diversion away from the real news .

  7. Pch101 says:

    @Scott:

    She has a new book. In her case, I would see this sort of endorsement as driven largely by self-promotion.

  8. C. Clavin says:

    The Comb-over and the Bimbo
    Vote Republican ’16

  9. SenyorDave says:

    @Tyrell: So its the liberal media at it again. Because the 30%+ of Republicans who would like to see Trump as POTUS (and Palin a few years ago) are a creation of the media?

  10. An Interested Party says:

    The news media is using Trump as a distraction and diversion away from the real news .

    Oh? And what is that “real news”….

  11. C. Clavin says:

    We can be positive that Trump’s xenophobia is helping ISIS’s recruiting efforts. I wonder if he is also helping white supremacists recruit more members?

  12. Jeremy R says:

    Such support is potentially embarrassing for Mr Trump in the run-up to a planned visit to Israel, where he expects to meet Benjamin Netanyahu, the country’s prime minister, according to remarks the candidate made to a gathering of Jewish Republicans in Washington last week.

    Trump’s actually canceled his planned trip and meeting:

    https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/674924540347195392

    I have decided to postpone my trip to Israel and to schedule my meeting with @Netanyahu at a later date after I become President of the U.S.

    ~ presumably in reaction to the Prime Minister denouncing his Muslim travel ban proposal and also casting their meeting as a meaningless, perfunctory obligation.

  13. CSK says:

    @C. Clavin:

    Absolutely. He’s already gotten the endorsement of Stormfront, and several of the white separatist websites.

  14. gVOR08 says:

    @SenyorDave:

    Because the 30%+ of Republicans who would like to see Trump as POTUS (and Palin a few years ago) are a creation of the media?

    To some extent yes, they are a media creation And not just FOX. Trump is very good at exploiting media, which grows his audience, which the media are happy to exploit. So is it Trumps doing, the media’s the base? Chicken and egg.

  15. Guarneri says:

    You may disagree with his proposal. You may think it too strident, antithetical to American values or other adjectives. But it’s not bigotry. You didn’t hear this before recent events, events for which the administration and law enforcement are manifestly unprepared to cope.

    As for David Duke, that’s pretty pathetic argumentation. CAIR and Democrats have expressed a number of common views. That doesn’t mean Democrats are an extension of the Muslim Brotherhood.

  16. An Interested Party says:

    But it’s not bigotry.

    Hmm…

    In English the word “bigot” refers to a person whose habitual state of mind includes an obstinate, irrational, or unfair intolerance of ideas, opinions, ethnicities, or beliefs that differ from their own, and intolerance of the people who hold them.

  17. @An Interested Party: Exactly. You don’t know what bigotry means, and posting its definition simply puts a spotlight on your own ignorance. You can only think that Trump, Palin, Rush, etc, are bigots, because they irrationally fear Islam, and that exposes your ignorance of Islam. Their fear, their concern, their dislike is not irrational. It is not unfair. Islam is not a race. It is a theology, and a theology that mandates the murder, humiliation, or conversion of all non-Muslims. Obviously, such a totalitarian ideology is at war with the concept of free speech and freedom of religion.

  18. You are right. Watch the downvotes pile up, as the sad little liberals cannot imagine any reason why Trump would call for banning people who subscribe to an ideology that seeks the destruction of their own country. Clearly the man is a racist!

    By all means, let’s keep importing people who want Sharia law. What could ever go wrong?

  19. Pch101 says:

    @InRussetShadows:

    Islam is not a race. It is a theology, and a theology that mandates the murder, humiliation, or conversion of all non-Muslims.

    Learning about religions from right-wing blogs really isn’t the best idea.

    The Bible includes all sorts of nasty passages that praise the use of violence to punish behavior that is perfectly legal today, yet many modern Christians skip the distasteful passages in favor of the nicer ones.

    Muslims do the same thing — most people inherent their religions, and pick and choose the parts that they like while not taking everything literally. Your cartoon version of their practices is the problem, not the religion.

  20. @C. Clavin: LOL @ xenophobia. Such a simplistic explanation with no basis in reality. The problem is the totalitarian theology of Islam. The problem is importing mass numbers of people with no real ability to screen them. The problem is not xenophobia.

  21. Tony W says:

    @InRussetShadows: The potato seems to have migrated to the brain. Nearly all religions are totalitarian in their theology – that’s kinda the point, we’re saved – you aren’t. Otherwise how can good people self-righteously get through their pathetic, meaningless lives?

  22. An Interested Party says:

    …puts a spotlight on your own ignorance.

    Followed by…

    It is a theology, and a theology that mandates the murder, humiliation, or conversion of all non-Muslims.

    Trump would call for banning people who subscribe to an ideology that seeks the destruction of their own country.

    Such a simplistic explanation with no basis in reality.

    Oh the irony…

  23. Hal_10000 says:

    Trump’s remarks have really blown up the schism between insane conservative (the Trumpers) and the sane ones (everyone else).

  24. Tillman says:

    @Guarneri:

    But it’s not bigotry. You didn’t hear this before recent events, events for which the administration and law enforcement are manifestly unprepared to cope.

    It might not be bigotry per se, but you’re wrong to write that we’ve never heard this stuff before. The months after 9/11 were full of people clamoring for this kind of response and Bush 43 tampered down on it multiple times.

  25. the Q says:

    InRussetShadows…..you are like the idiots during the Cold War who saw a Russkie under every couch and in every gov’t position, selling out this country….

    But then to you paranoid wingnut freaks, a few towel heads are much more dangerous than an enemy we vanquished which had a 3 million man standing army, 8000 nuclear missiles, 40 submarines carrying 20 ICBMs, 780 bomber planes, half a continent under their thumb, the second largest economy with a population of 300 million and an ideology that “would bury the West”.

    Somehow dipschitz like you DID not prevail and we didn’t have to read everyone’s mail or pass a Patriot Act to beat our foe.

    Your ilk and your delusional fear will destroy this country much faster than any Islamic maniac.

  26. Monala says:

    @Pch101: As this video from the Netherlands shows. For those who can’t watch it, two Dutch guys put a Qu’ran cover over a Bible, then walked around the street and read some of the more violent or misogynistic passages to various people. The people’s reactions were, of course, to condemn Islam and Muslims for believing such things. The two guys then pulled the Qu’ran cover off and showed people that they were reading from the Bible.

    One interesting thing is that pretty much everyone, upon the reveal, admitted that their earlier responses had been based on ignorance and prejudice. I wonder if Americans would have this much humility and self-awareness if such an experiment were conducted in this country?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEnWw_lH4tQ

  27. humanoid.panda says:

    @Tillman: Of course its bigotry. Someone who hears of a murder by a Black guy and proposes to start shooting “these people” is a racist bigot. Someone who thinks that Madoff is proof of Zionist conpsiracy is anti-semitic bigot.Someone who proposes to shut down churches because of Robert Dear is an anti-Christian bigot. Someone who think a random act of shooting is a reason to go on the war path with the entire Muslim community is an anti-Muslim bigot.

  28. Grumpy Realist says:

    @InRussetShadows: if we’re going to kick out any group that has its own religious law, you’re going to kick out both the Catholics and the Jews…

  29. mannning says:

    @Pch101:

    You stated that Muslims pick and choose what they believe out of Islamic documents, “just as Christians do” the Bible. This is certainly possible, but what that means is they are NOT Muslims anymore. To be a Muslim you must adhere to the word of Muhammad as true gospel as written in the Koran. Do you have specific knowledge of just what these ersatz Muslims actually ascribe to out of the Koran, the Hadith, Sharia, Fatwas, and the preaching of their Sheiks and imams? I seriously doubt you have that knowledge, but if you do, please spell it out for those who don’t know how to pick and choose from the Islamic documents mentioned.
    Tell which Suras they accept and which Suras they reject. This is absolutely key to understanding the mindset of American Muslims and possible immigrants. While you are at it, tell which of the 127 mentions of Jihad they accept and which they reject. Only then can we properly assess the real mindsets we will be dealing with. Simple excuses are not on!

  30. Tony W says:

    @mannning: So you are arguing Joel Osteen is not a Christian?

  31. Pch101 says:

    To be a Muslim you must adhere to the word of Muhammad as true gospel as written in the Koran.

    You might want to look up the “five pillars of Islam.” They aren’t what you think that they are.

    The Koran is subject to interpretation. There are varying interpretations. As is the case with Protestant Christians, there is no universal central authority embraced by all believers that decides what those interpretations are or who belongs to the faith (although as is true with Christianity, there are some who take upon themselves to impose their views on others, anyway.)

    So your premise is wrong from the start. Sorry.

  32. mannning says:

    @Pch101:

    You failed to give any specifics at all of the selective beliefs of at least one sect of Islam. I am looking at the five pillars as I write, and the first one is the declaration of faith, and that there is none worthy of worship except God, and that Muhammad is His messenger to all human beings till the Day of Judgment. the Prophethood of Muhammad obliges the Muslims to follow h is exemplary life as a mode.

    So tell which of the writings of Muhammad must be followed, as he is the messenger of God, expecially by ALL human beings? Tell which of the Jihad passages he wrote are to be followed for a start. Without the specifics I will conclude that you are simply evasive and not seriously addressing the question of Muslim beliefs.

  33. David M says:

    @mannning:

    There are millions of Muslims already living here in the United States. We can already see there isn’t anything to worry about. Why doesn’t that answer your “questions”?

  34. Pch101 says:

    @mannning:

    Your insistence that there is only one interpretation of the Koran is a non-starter. Your question is based upon a false premise, so answering your question as if it makes sense would be illogical.

    As is true within Judaism and Christianity, there are religious scholars with different views of various subjects. If you are genuinely interested, you could spend a few minutes looking these up.

  35. mannning says:

    Be@David M:

    Because that simple numerical fact tells me nothing at all about their true mindset and their goals, both now and in the future.

  36. mannning says:

    @Pch101:

    BS. Thank you for nothing. Perhaps you can simply answer the Jihad question for yourself. Your evasion was expected.

  37. Pch101 says:

    @mannning:

    I answered your question directly. You’re just not smart enough to understand the answer, nor are you smart enough to ask the right questions.

  38. mannning says:

    It is exactly this evasion that causes great suspicion of those who claim to be Muslims, yet they do NOT come forth with any specifics. Plainly read, the Koran is abrogated to those Suras from the Sword on that preach war and jihad. Do you deny this?

  39. David M says:

    @mannning:

    I’m pretty sure their actual actions are a better clue to their mindset than your unfounded worries about something you not only know nothing about, but have shown you aren’t interested in understanding.

  40. Just 'nutha ig'rant cracker says:

    @mannning: As you look at the five pillars as you are writing, tell me, enlightened one, who are the “true Muslims”–the Shia, the Sunni, or the Sufi? It appears to me, that by what you said above, they can’t all be.

  41. Pch101 says:

    @mannning:

    I wasn’t evasive. I was pretty clear when I pointed out that you aren’t very bright.

    I’ll type this very slowly: Muslims don’t all agree with each other about everything. If you do some honest research, then you can find how they differ with each other, including on the subject of jihad.

    In any case, most Muslims aren’t fans of ISIS because ISIS would kill them, too, if they had the chance. ISIS really enjoys blowing up the mosques of those Muslims who don’t share their beliefs, so it isn’t hard to imagine why the targets of their aggression might not like them very much.

  42. mannning says:

    @David M:

    More BS. I have asked question regarding Islam in detail, and all I get is evasion. I have read the Koran, excerpts from the Hadith, the Sharia, and several authorities on Islam. That jihad will not be discussed doesn’t surprise me because it represents the sordid underbelly of Islam. a subject that is central to the current arguments about immigration and travel. The attempt to sluff it off is noted, as is your comment.

  43. mannning says:

    @Pch101:

    I asked YOU, as representing an authority to tell me about the jihad that you ascribe to, and you evade me completely. I see that there is not hope in getting you to go deeper into the subject here. All is evasion. Bye!

  44. David M says:

    @mannning:

    You might stop for a minute to think about the fact that ISIS wants a war between Islam and the western world. You seem to be agreeing with them.

  45. Mikey says:

    @mannning:

    I have read the Koran, excerpts from the Hadith, the Sharia, and several authorities on Islam.

    I was reminded just now of this exchange from the wonderful 1988 film, “A Fish Called Wanda.”

    Wanda: Oh, right! To call you stupid would be an insult to stupid people! I’ve known sheep that could outwit you. I’ve worn dresses with higher IQs. But you think you’re an intellectual, don’t you, ape?

    Otto West: Apes don’t read philosophy.

    Wanda: Yes they do, Otto. They just don’t understand it.

  46. mannning says:
  47. Pch101 says:

    @mannning:

    I asked YOU, as representing an authority to tell me about the jihad that you ascribe to, and you evade me completely.

    I didn’t evade you at all. “Jihad” means “struggle,” which includes the personal struggle against, sin, and there are varying interpretations of exactly what that entails and what isn’t permitted.

    I don’t ascribe to any of them because I’m not Muslim, but I do acknowledge that there is more than one view on the subject. If you were really interested, you could just look these up, but it’s obvious that you just want to whine on the internet.

  48. mannning says:

    @Mikey:

    So asking questions is stupid? I think not. Instead of engaging in an exchange to broaden and deepen knowledge of the subject, it is to you appropriate to call me stupid. Fine. I note once more that all that has been accomplished here is to \say there are a lot of different interpretations of the Koran and jihad! DUH~! No attempt to engage in the specifics of jihad, for instance, and there are some 127 mentions of it in the Koran. What to believe was my question, and I get this sh*t.

  49. Ebenezer_Arvigenius says:

    I have asked question regarding Islam in detail, and all I get is evasion.

    The problem is that your questions are barely coherent, consist largely of indecipherable babble and those parts whose meaning can be guessed at are for the most part nonsensical (“Please explain to me the exact personal convictions of every single Muslim in America”).

    In all honesty, you read like someone to whom English is a B1-level second language and that makes the deep discussions you claim to want rather unlikely until you rework your posting style significantly.

  50. mannning says:

    @Pch101:

    I see that your usual progressive debate mode is in full force. If you can’t or won’t answer the questions, you attack the questioner. So you admit you are ignorant of the Koran. You thus disqualify yourself. Bye!

  51. WR says:

    @mannning: “So asking questions is stupid?”

    No, what is stupid is asking for a precise description of the thinking of a billion and a half individuals on any subject, and believing there is any kind of uniformity.

    Let’s put it this way: The Koran forbids the eating of pork. And yet, there are plenty of bacon-lovers among those billion and a half people. As there are among Jewish people, by the way.

    Demanding to know how “Muslims” think is about as useful as stomping your little feet until someone tells you how Asians think. There is no answer…. or there are billions of answers… and either way it’s a useless and foolish waste of everyone’s time.

  52. Mikey says:

    @mannning: I forgot to put up Otto’s statement that triggered Wanda’s rant:

    Otto West: Don’t call me stupid.

  53. Tony W says:

    @manning cannot see the log in his own eye.

  54. mannning says:

    @Ebenezer_Arvigenius:

    WONDERFUL ATTACK! I must applaud you for that nonsense. I am now rather firmly convinced that no one posting here has a true, in-depth understanding of the Koran, jihad, or any of the other works of Islam. Much better to make personal attacks or to evade the questions, or say the questions make no sense than to admit your ignorance. You really don’t know much about Islam do you? You might spend a few minutes on Google searching for “Jihad”. It might tell you something.

  55. David M says:

    @mannning:

    If you are correct about Islam and Jihad, why are Muslims fleeing from and fighting against ISIS? It seems like those are mutually exclusive possibilities. If you and ISIS are correct about what Islam truly believes, shouldn’t be majority of the Muslim world be joining them? Given that we can clearly see the Muslim world is no different from anyone else, and wants nothing to do with ISIS, shouldn’t the conclusion be obvious?

  56. Pch101 says:

    I had always thought of Dunning-Kruger as a kind of affliction, but I can see here that some people have made it into a lifestyle choice.

  57. HarvardLaw92 says:

    @mannning:

    am now rather firmly convinced that no one posting here has a true, in-depth understanding of the Koran, jihad, or any of the other works of Islam

    Except you, of course. Did Gary Powers explain Islam to you over lunch in the CIA cafeteria? 😀

  58. Rafer Janders says:

    @mannning:

    You stated that Muslims pick and choose what they believe out of Islamic documents, “just as Christians do” the Bible. This is certainly possible, but what that means is they are NOT Muslims anymore. To be a Muslim you must adhere to the word of Muhammad as true gospel as written in the Koran. Do you have specific knowledge of just what these ersatz Muslims actually ascribe to out of the Koran, the Hadith, Sharia, Fatwas, and the preaching of their Sheiks and imams? I seriously doubt you have that knowledge, but if you do, please spell it out for those who don’t know how to pick and choose from the Islamic documents mentioned.
    Tell which Suras they accept and which Suras they reject. This is absolutely key to understanding the mindset of American Muslims and possible immigrants. While you are at it, tell which of the 127 mentions of Jihad they accept and which they reject. Only then can we properly assess the real mindsets we will be dealing with. Simple excuses are not on!

    You stated that Americans pick and choose what they believe out of the Constitution, “just as Christians do” the Bible. This is certainly possible, but what that means is they are NOT Americans anymore. To be an American you must adhere to the Constitution. Do you have specific knowledge of just what these ersatz Americans actually ascribe to out of the Constitution, and the judgments of their judges and law professors? I seriously doubt you have that knowledge, but if you do, please spell it out for those who don’t know how to pick and choose from the Constitution.

    Tell which of the amendments in the Bill of Rights they accept and which of them they reject. This is absolutely key to understanding the mindset of Americans and possible immigrants. While you are at it, tell which of the concepts of free speech they accept and which they reject. Only then can we properly assess the real mindsets we will be dealing with. Simple excuses are not on!

  59. Rafer Janders says:

    @mannning:

    I am now rather firmly convinced that no one posting here has a true, in-depth understanding of the Koran, jihad, or any of the other works of Islam.

    But…you’re posting here…so you’re included in that set….so does that mean YOU don’t have a true, in-depth understanding of the Koran, jihad, or any of the other works of Islam? And if you don’t, how can you judge if other’s don’t? Paradox!

  60. mannning says:

    @WR:

    HA! Another evader heard from! Even among Shia and Sunni there are large areas of agreement on the Koran, jihad and what it all means. I was not asking for a billion answers, but one cogent statement from someone that knew what the hell they were talking about regarding the Koran and Jihad. That the answers to this would be an embarrassment to many posters who through their ignorance do not stop to think that there is more to this issue than meets the eye must be so, and, obviously, there are those who do not want to bring jihad thoughts to light also.

    Hence the obfuscation of the issue, especially of jihad and jihadist terrorists, is quite apparent and wholly expected. No one here wants to dive that deep into Islam. It would torque their minds the wrong way.

  61. David M says:

    @mannning:

    There’s no discussion to be had, other than why you seem to be helping ISIS foment a war between Islam and the west.

  62. Pch101 says:

    I was not asking for a billion answers, but one cogent statement

    Translation: “Why won’t you provide an inaccurate but simple answer that makes me happy instead of telling me that it isn’t that simple?!?!?!”

  63. mannning says:

    @Rafer Janders:

    I have spent the time to read up on Islam. I exempted myself in the statement you quote. It is well noted that the arguments put forth are meant to deflect, discredit, and demean the questioner, me, but it doesn’t matter. The issue is out there now for others to read about and question if they have a modicum of intellectual honesty. What do you know about Islam that you would allow them a favorable status in America? Not much, I think. That is the problem.

  64. grumpy realist says:

    @mannning: And why, pray, do you think that you are so much more knowledgable than everyone else?

    Question: are Sufis Muslim or not? Yes or no?

  65. grumpy realist says:

    (P.S. Remember when we used to get this sort of ranting from the Protestants screeching about letting Catholics into the country and how they would all be bowing down to the Great Whore of Babylon? Next century, different scapegoat. Idiots never change.)

  66. mannning says:

    @David M:

    Not worthy of you. That is too bad. Bye

  67. C. Clavin says:

    They are now saying the female half of the self-radicalized jihadist wannabes in California tried to make contact with ISIS, or other extremists, and they ignored her.
    So there you have it…just another American religious zealot with far too easy access to killing machines. No different than Robert Dear.

  68. Ebenezer_Arvigenius says:

    Not worthy of you. That is too bad. Bye

    Oooh. Now I get it. So you are already in possession of all the answers. What you actually want is for everybody else to spend their time to write down essays so you can assign grades.

    Well that would at least explain the casting-show tilt (“Bye”, “Too bad” …) to your posts. What we have here is basically “The Apprentice – WebEdition” with our very own mini-Trump.

    How about you spent the effort and share your wisdom with us if you are already so far past our level? Enlighten us! It might be fun :-).

  69. Davebo says:

    @mannning:

    What is this Koran you ignorantly speak of? Is it similar to the Kristen Vible?

  70. Deserttrek says:

    bigotry, ha ha ha ha ha .. look in the mirror dougy

  71. Pch101 says:

    @Ebenezer_Arvigenius:

    So you are already in possession of all the answers.

    He must think that ISIS has the correct interpretation of Islam, and that any Muslim who doesn’t agree with them isn’t really Muslim.

  72. Davebo says:

    @mannning:

    That the answers to this would be an embarrassment to many posters who through their ignorance do not stop to think that there is more to this issue than meets the eye

    You’re embarrassing yourself now. You’ve obviously never spent any time in the middle east. You don’t even know how to spell the name of the Muslim holy text so it’s a safe bet you haven’t studied it.

    You’re the perfect Trump supporter. Ignorant and loud.

  73. Bill Lefrak says:

    Well, keep in mind Palin is uneducated and unintelligent, although you do have to give her and her husband credit for being self-made millionaires in business.

    She’s also part of one of those extreme Protestant sects. Waaay out there on the fringes. Fire and brimstone. Waiting for the Rapture. Cray-cray.

    Not too bright, uneducated and a kooky Protestant faith. Bad combination. Not too surprising, then, she’s on board with this sub-idiotic idea of blanket banning all Muslim immigration.

    Trump is her polar opposite in many ways. Trump is highly educated. Wharton is no joke. He’s not unintelligent. He’s not at all religious, despite recent cynical and ham handed statements to the contrary. But he shares one element: Divorced from reality. You don’t get too many reality checks when you inherit a bunch of money and live in Manhattan penthouses and for decades you mingle at cocktail parties with other trust fund babies, celebrities, social climbers and debutantes. Then on the flip side obviously there’s not too many reality checks when you live for a long period in such a low population density state as Alaska. Cabin fever.

    In the end, although they come from opposite directions, they’ve coalesced here in a conclave of idiocy. Bad demographics lead to bad results.

  74. WR says:

    @mannning: “I was not asking for a billion answers, but one cogent statement from someone that knew what the hell they were talking about regarding the Koran and Jihad.”

    You were not asking for a billion answers… but that’s all the answer there is.

    To suggest that a billion people all interpret an ancient document in the same way — or even a handful of the same ways — is bigotry in a nutshell, as it assumes that while American and Christians are individuals with individual thoughts, Muslims are a kind of hive mind all sharing a single concept.

    Here’s the thing: The Koran is not a software manual, anymore than the Bible is. Looking at the Bible for a moment, there is a commandment that reads “thou shalt not kill.” Some Christians believe that means it is wrong in all instances to kill another person; others believe it still allows for deaths in a “just” war; others still believe that it allows the death penalty if the victim is bad enough. And that’s four single-syllable words… subject to thousands or millions of interpretations.

    So if I start to demand “what do Christians think about killing,” it’s a nonsense question with no answer or a billion answers, but no single answer.

    And yes, I get that you’ve decided that Christians and Muslims are completely different. But that’s nothing but bigotry.

  75. WR says:

    @mannning: Quick, explain to me how string theory works in two sentences. And don’t try telling me it’s far too complicated to be boiled down to a handful of words. This just proves that you are intellectually dishonest, because I know far more about the subject than you do, which might suggest I’m just trolling by demanding you explain it to me, but the fact that you won’t give me a two-sentence answer to this question proves that you hate America.

    Sincerely,

    Manning Jr.

  76. WR says:

    @Bill Lefrak: “You don’t get too many reality checks when you inherit a bunch of money and live in Manhattan penthouses and for decades you mingle at cocktail parties with other trust fund babies, celebrities, social climbers and debutantes. Then on the flip side obviously there’s not too many reality checks when you live for a long period in such a low population density state as Alaska.”

    In just about every one of your message you give us long lists of those Americans you find clearly to be intellectually and morally inferior to you. Among those who have come up are academics, scientists, students. baristas, activists, people who go to cocktail parties, liberals, Trump followers. Now we’ve got people who live in high-density places like New York and low-density places like Alaska.

    So I’m wondering — exactly who do you consider worthy of being taken seriously? I mean, it’s pretty obviously anyone who is exactly like you… but what does that mean?

  77. Tillman says:

    @humanoid.panda: I think in the case of Trump you’re confusing marketing for bigotry. It’s no less excusable, but it is a different animal to contend with.

  78. Tillman says:

    @Tillman: Disregard everything I’ve said. Guarneri’s full of it.

  79. Matt says:

    @mannning: Have you even bothered to read the bible?
    Old testament?
    The torah?
    Clearly you haven’t as there’s nothing in the Koran that isn’t in those other books. Mostly because those books are based off older writings…
    On that note do you mix fabrics? Deuteronomy 22:11
    Have you eaten shellfish lately? Leviticus 11:12
    Ate something that had cloven foot but doesn’t chew it’s own cud? Leviticus 11:3
    Have you stoned everyone you’ve heard cursing? Leviticus 24:16
    How many cheaters have you stoned (including rape victims that didn’t scream loud enough? Deuteronomy 22:23-24
    Have you stoned to death any female who wasn’t a virgin when she married? Deuteronomy 22:13-21.

    I can keep going there’s a ton of this shit in your holy books. The prescribed punishment for any sin in the bible is death via stoning as stated in ezekial and other areas.

    So you’re in the exact same boat as the Muslims that you decry as not being real Muslims. You’re not a real Christian by your own standards.

  80. Grumpy Realist says:

    @Matt: I wonder if Mannning has ever even MET a Muslim…

  81. Robin Cohen says:

    @Scott:Compared to Palin, even Big Bird is a genius.