London's first Muslim mayor rejects Trump's offer to be an 'exception' to ban

London's first Muslim mayor swiftly turned down Donald Trump's assurance that he would be allowed in the United States as an "exception" to a hypothetical Muslim ban. "This isn't just about me. It's about my friends, my family, and everyone who comes from a background similar to mine, anywhere in the world," Mayor Sadiq Khan told BuzzFeed.

On Monday, Trump told The New York Times that "there will always be exceptions" to his proposed ban, and that Khan would likely be among them. Khan had previously slammed Trump's proposed ban, telling Time that, "I want to go to America to meet with and engage with American mayors…If Donald Trump becomes the president I'll be stopped from going there by virtue of my faith."

Khan has since torn into Trump for holding "ignorant" views of Islam and claimed that the presumptive Republican nominee's ideas put both England and the U.S. in danger. "Donald Trump and those around him think that Western liberal values are incompatible with mainstream Islam," Khan said. "London has proved him wrong."

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