Here's how Donald Trump and Ben Carson are trying to clarify their Syrian refugee stances

Republican presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Ben Carson each tried to clarify their suggestions Friday that the U.S. should have a database to track people as a precaution against attacks from the Islamic State and other extremist groups.

Trump said he meant to track Syrian refugees only, not all Muslims, The Star-Ledger reports.

"I want a database for the Syrian refugees that Obama is going to let in, if we don't stop him, as Republicans, if we don't stop him."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Trump has also said the U.S. should consider closing mosques. Meanwhile, Carson said he meant the database should be for "everybody" in the country or looking to enter, not just Muslims, CBS News reports.

"You know one of the hallmarks of America is that we treat everybody the same," Carson said. "So if we're just going to pick out a particular group of people based on their religion, based on their race, based on some other type of thing, that's setting a dangerous precedent."

Even as Republican legislators are calling on Obama to refuse Syrian refugees over security concerns, the two party outsiders are taking a harder stance than their competitors in the debate. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has said the idea of registering people is "just wrong."