Did U.S. President Donald Trump say that Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law need to leave the country? No, that's not true: Trump never explicitly said that. The quotes have been making the rounds on social media and via email chains for almost two decades, each time substituting different countries and world leaders who never made the comments attributed to them.
The latest version of the claim originated from a blog post published by Stories and News Nigeria on January 11, 2020, titled "Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told to leave US: Trump said" (archived here). It opened:
Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of AMERICA, as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks
Separately, TRUMP angered some American Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques.Quote:
'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AMERICANS, MUST ADAPT... Take It Or Leave It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans.
Users on social media only saw this title, description and thumbnail:
Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told to leave US:Trump said
Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of AMERICA, as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks Separately, TRUMP a...
The post has a long history on Facebook and other social media platforms, as well as through forwarded Spam email chains. In 2001, Snopes debunked the claim that former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard had said in a speech that Muslims must leave Australia. The post contained the exact quotes featured in this latest version.
Gillard never made the inflammatory statements. The viral message has been attributed to other former Australian prime ministers, including John Howard and Kevin Rudd.
According to Snopes, the source of several quotes is an editorial by U.S. Air Force veteran Barry Loudermilk, who wrote, "This Is America. Like It Or Leave It." Other introductory quotes appear to be a mishmash of statements Australian politicians made about Muslims after the July 7, 2005, bombings in the London Underground.
Last year, Snopes again exposed the false quotes when they shifted from Australia to the United States.
Each time the post is shared, people insert new names and countries to suit their narrative. Bottom line: Trump never made these comments, nor did the Australian prime ministers before him.
