'It's an anti-terror ban' Furious QT guest shuts down Nick Hewer as she defends Trump
A QUESTION Time guest exploded into a fierce defence on Donald Trump’s travel ban after her co-panellists branded it anti-Muslim.
Furious QT guest: It is an anti-terror ban not a Muslim ban
Fury erupted across the globe last week after the Republican President signed an executive order to temporarily ban refugees, from mostly Muslim countries, from entering the United States.
The order sparked anti-Trump demonstrations and in the UK a petition was launched to halt Mr Trump’s state visit to Britain later this year.
Theresa May has repeatedly refused to cancel the official invite to the President, however, the visit is now set to be debated in Parliament on February 20.
Calls for the visit to be halted came amid claims it would send the wrong message to invite a US President to see the Queen while implementing anti-Muslims measures.
The question was heavily debated on the BBC show on Thursday evening and Laura Perrins, co-editor of The Conservative Woman, dismissed suggestions it was an anti-Muslim ban as she said the visit should go ahead.
Having a go at co-panellist and Countdown host Nick Hewer, she said: “This is not a Muslim ban. There are 1.6billion Muslims in the world and this affects seven countries.
“Those seven countries are Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. They were designated by [Barack] Obama as terrorist enclaves.
“And as I said, the President has a constitutional and moral right to protect US citizens from the real terrorist threat that is out of those countries.”
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It’s an anti-terrorist ban and something needs to be done about ISIS
Which prompted the former Apprentice advisor to say: “Obama noted those seven countries on a specific threat at that time and none of the nationals from those countries have ever cost any lives.
“Perhaps we should be on that ban because Richard Reid was crossing the Atlantic trying to explode his shoe and take that aircraft down.”
Seething from the ridiculous suggestion Britain should be placed on the ban list, Ms Perrins said there was a difference between a stable country and the countries included in Mr Trump’s executive order.
“Britain isn’t an unable country,” she told the BBC audience in Wallasey.
“All of those seven, apart from Iran, are war torn countries. Britain is a stable country, it’s a ridiculous thing to say.
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“And the fact that Britain isn’t included, and all the European Muslims aren’t included and the vast majority of the world’s Muslims aren’t included in this ban goes to show how wrong it is to say it is an anti-Muslim ban.”
Ms Perrins added the US President had every right to implement policies to stop Islamic State terrorists from committing heinous acts on American soil.
She said: “It’s an anti-terrorist ban and something needs to be done about ISIS.
“They are a barbaric organisation and there is no way that they should be allowed to infiltrate as refugees and be a threat to the western world.”
Mrs May’s refusal to stop the US President’s scheduled visit was lambasted by a number of politicians as both Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Lib Dem leader Tim Farron called on the PM to reconsider the anti-Trump petition.
The online campaign, which has more than 1.8 million signatures, accused the Republican of being vulgar and a misogynist and added the visit “would cause the Queen embarrassment".
However, a spokesman for Number 10 dismissed the huge petition as he said the visit, which was announced during Mrs May’s visit to Washington, would go ahead.
The spokesman said: "America is a hugely important ally. We have to think long term."
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