President Trump declared this week that he would ban Sharia law in the United States.
“You do have pockets of it,” Trump told Glenn Beck, discussing Sharia law in the nation. “You go to London, you go to Paris — it’s almost like their second way of life, it’s ridiculous.”
“I would absolutely prohibit the Sharia law thing and it is happening in this country a little bit and when we see it, we take it out and you have to take it out,” he added.
Trump’s comments come as several lawmakers have introduced legislation taking aim at the rise of Sharia law in the United States.
In a February hearing on Sharia law, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) declared, Let’s be clear, this is not about having the freedom of worshiping a religion of one’s choosing, such as Islam, but forcing a foreign legal code that is incompatible with our laws and legal system that provides unwanted consequences to the American people. It’s everything we’ve fought against for more than 250 years.”
Last year, Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) introduced the No Sharia Act, which would prohibit courts from enforcing judgments or contracts from enforcing foreign laws in contrast with the Constitution, nullify contracts based on foreign laws, and prohibit marriage, divorce, and other documents if found to be inconsistent with U.S. law.
While Republicans move against Islamic influence, Democrats have called one such effort, the Sharia Free America Caucus, “hateful.” The 119 Democrats who condemned the caucus, led by Senator Chris Van Hollen (MD) and Representatives James E. Clyburn (SC), Chair of the Democratic Faith Working Group, Andre Carson (IN), Rosa DeLauro (CT), Jerry Nadler (NY), Hank Johnson (GA), and Ro Khanna (CA), argued that it “reflects longstanding Islamophobic narratives and anti-Muslim sentiment.”
