Donald Trump wants to know why refugees aren't 'fighting to save Syria'
Donald Trump told supporters in New Hampshire on Wednesday night that he's suspicious of the refugees who are fleeing from the war in Syria.
"Did you ever see a migration like that?" he asked. "They're all men, and they're all strong-looking guys.... There are so many men; there aren't that many women. And I'm saying to myself: Why aren't they fighting to save Syria? Why are they migrating all over Europe? Seriously." The United States has agreed to take in at least 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next few years, but Trump said that since they have "no identification," no one can be sure where they are from. "Military tactics are very interesting," he said. "This could be one of the great tactical ploys of all time. A 200,000-man army, maybe. Or if they sent 50,000 or 80,000 or 100,000... that could be possible. I don't know what it is, but it could be possible."
Trump promised that if he is elected, he will expel all Syrian refugees, a statement that elicited the loudest applause of the night, The Washington Post reports. "They're going back," he said. "And if I lose, I guess they're staying. But if I win, they're going back." After his own town hall in New Hampshire, Jeb Bush told reporters Trump's remarks were wrong: "Send them all back? To a hellhole? This is the same guy, by the way, that is also advocating exactly what seems to be supportive of Putin and his emergence in Syria. That's not the proper policy for the United States." Catherine Garcia
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Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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