Trump signals softer stance to ban Muslims from US

By Kasim Ileri

WASHINGTON

Donald Trump’s campaign is signaling a refining of his proposal to ban Muslims from the U.S. as he trails Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in recent polls in the presidential race.

A spokeswoman for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee told CNN that the candidate’s proposal in December never included all Muslims but was rather intended for those coming from countries where there is the problem of terrorism.

"There's been no change. Mr. Trump still wants to stop individuals from coming into this country who cannot be vetted," Katrina Pierson said Monday. “It doesn’t matter where you’re coming from, except for fact that the terrorist nations, which is something he is adding to this policy to make it more clear, that if you are coming from a hostile nation and you cannot be vetted, absolutely you should not come into this country.”

Pierson’s comments followed Trump’s remarks in Scotland this past weekend when he said he would not be concerned by Scottish Muslims going to the U.S.

In the wake of mass shootings in Paris and San Bernardino, California, late last year, Trump called for “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on.”

The real estate mogul he has since repeated his demand throughout his campaign for president.

The so-called clarification to his Muslim ban, however, may be prompted by slumping poll numbers.

His numbers began to slip within days of the latest U.S. mass shooting in Orlando, Florida that killed 50 people, including the alleged shooter.

Immediately following reports of the shooting, Trump claimed he had predicted such an attack and blamed President Barack Obama for the shooting that he said justified his proposal to ban Muslims from the U.S.

The following day he reiterated the proposal, this time calling for a halt to immigration from areas with “a proven history of terrorism.”

Right before the shooting, Trump was tied with Hillary Clinton in the polls but his numbers has since slipped by 5 percent in some surveys and by as much as double digits in others, according to several national polls.

The latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey showed Trump at 41 percent compared to 46 percent support for Clinton.

Trump is yet to publicly address the shifting rhetoric.