Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump said Sunday on ABC's This Week that he suggested making a database for Syrian refugees, but that he couldn't rule out tracking all Muslims in the country in light of the Islamic State's Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in Paris.
Trump also doubled down on a claim he made Saturday, that Arabs in New Jersey were cheering on the 9/11 attacks:
Hey, I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down. And I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. Thousands of people were cheering. [This Week]
When host George Stephanopoulos played Trump's above sound bite and repeatedly challenged his account, the presidential contender responded, "George, it did happen."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
Trump's claim that he watched this footage on TV is rooted in myths that first circulated in the aftermath of Sept. 11.
Reports at the time showed cheers from in Middle Eastern countries, but news outlets in New Jersey didn't report anything similar happening in Jersey City, according to a New York Times search. There were reports suggesting people danced in the streets in Paterson, New Jersey, as the Twin Towers fell, but city police did not find any evidence to back up that account, The Record reports.
Listen to Trump's full phone interview with Stephanopoulos below. Julie Kliegman
-
5 health-conscious cartoons about anti-vaccine rhetoricCartoons Artists take on RFK Jr's militant methods, the viral lottery, and more
-
September 13 editorial cartoonsCartoons Saturday's political cartoons include court-approved racial profiling and America's moral compass
-
Giorgio Armani obituary: designer revolutionised the business of fashionIn the Spotlight ‘King Giorgio’ came from humble beginnings to become a titan of the fashion industry and redefine 20th century clothing
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
