Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tom Perez says President Trump’s new temporary ban on travelers from six Muslim-majority nations shows his “obsession with religious discrimination.”
“This second Muslim ban is just as unconstitutional as the last one and it isn’t making us any safer,” Perez said in a statement Monday.
“These bans cause chaos at our airports, costs our economy billions, and worst of all, it’s fueling discrimination against the Muslim community,” Perez added. “This is not who we are as a country.”
“Trump’s obsession with religious discrimination is disgusting, un-American and outright dangerous. It’s obvious today that Trump hasn’t read the Constitution and couldn’t care less about the facts.”
Perez pointed to Trump’s rhetoric toward Muslims during the 2016 presidential race and said the new executive order will not survive legal scrutiny.
“Don’t be fooled — he promised again and again during his campaign that he would single out and persecute a specific religious group, and that’s exactly what he’s trying to do now,” he said.
“We look forward to the day the courts once again rule against President Trump,” added Perez, who served as Labor secretary in the Obama administration.
Trump earlier Monday issued a new executive order on immigration that includes key changes meant to help it withstand the legal challenges that torpedoed his previous travel ban.
The new order keeps a 90-day freeze on travelers from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen but no longer includes Iraq, a key ally in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
The measure also retains a 120-day pause on general refugee admissions into the U.S., but it no longer indefinitely blocks Syrian refugees, as did the previous order issued in January.
The administration has also cut language that would have given preference to religious minorities — such as Christians from the Middle East — once refugee resettlement resumes.
Critics had cited the previous order’s provision as evidence it was biased against Muslims and served as a de facto ban targeting them.
Trump’s new policy also provides clearer guidance on who is exempt from the ban, including legal permanent residents of the U.S. and people holding a valid visa at the time it was signed.
Dual nationals using a passport from a country not on the list are also not affected, much like foreign nationals traveling for diplomatic purposes.
Officials said the new order will go into effect on March 16, giving travelers, airports and airlines 10 days to prepare.