Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has said it is “absolutely” possible that a Muslim judge would be biased against him in the courtroom as a result of his plan to temporarily ban all Muslim visitors to the United States.
In an interview with CBS News’s Face the Nation, Mr Trump continued to argue that US District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who is overseeing a federal fraud case against the property mogul’s now-defunct Trump University, had treated him unfairly due to his “Mexican heritage”.
Mr Trump has vowed repeatedly to build a wall on the US-Mexican border to keep out “rapists” and drug traffickers. Judge Curiel is a US citizen, born in Indiana to Mexican immigrant parents. Asked whether he believed a Muslim judge would also treat him unfairly, Mr Trump replied: “It’s possible, yes. That would be possible, absolutely.”
Mr Trump’s argument seems to be that judges with certain backgrounds – ethnic, religious or otherwise – would be biased against him on the basis of his policies and pronouncements. Given the billionaire’s apparent hostility to a wide range of nationalities and demographic groups, the list of judges incapable of satisfying his standards for impartiality could be long.
In May, the Trump campaign produced a list of 11 people who could be nominated to the US Supreme Court under a Trump administration. All 11 were white.
Judge Curiel last week unsealed documents detailing the aggressive sales “playbook” used to entice potential “students” to Trump University. “I’ve had terrible rulings forever,” Trump told Face the Nation. “I say he’s got bias. I want to build a wall. I’m going to build a wall.”
Host John Dickerson then asked Mr Trump if he believed in the American “tradition” of not judging people based on their background. “I’m not talking about tradition. I’m talking about common sense, okay?” Mr Trump responded.
Several top Republicans have distanced themselves from Mr Trump’s claims about Judge Curiel in recent days. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he “couldn’t disagree more” with Mr Trump, while Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich – who has been mentioned as a potential running mate for Mr Trump – said the comments were “inexcusable”.
Both men have endorsed Mr Trump for President.
