Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) is calling on presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to soften his position on Muslims, saying a ban is “unconstitutional.”
“He’s got to soften his position there,” Flake said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday. “I mean, a total and complete ban on Muslims — that is a religious test that is certainly against the Constitution.
“And it is the last thing we should do if we want to win a war on terrorism,” Flake said. “So it’s constitutionally wrong, and also, strategically, it’s just not a smart thing to do.”
Trump last Wednesday doubled down on the ban, saying he doesn’t care if it hurts him in the general election.
“I don’t care if it hurts me. I’m doing the right thing when I do this. And whether it’s Muslim or whether it’s something else, I mean, I have to do the right thing, and that’s the way I’ve been guided,” Trump said.
Flake has been critical of Trump, calling some of his positions “nutty” and “difficult to swallow.”