Former CIA Director Michael Hayden: Trump Is Helping ISIS
Supporters of Donald Trump often cite the presumptive Republican nominee’s strong stance on such national security issues as terrorists and ISIS as reasons for that support. But despite Trump’s unspecific and unrealistic vow to “bomb the sh**” out of the Islamic State, his extreme anti-Muslim rhetoric is actually helping ISIS, says one of the United States’ top foreign policy experts, Michael Hayden.
Michael Hayden is the former head of both the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the National Security Agency (NSA). In a recent interview with the Guardian, Hayden said that Trump’s statements against Muslims have damaged the United States and helped ISIS.
“The jihadist narrative is that there is undying enmity between Islam and the modern world so when Trump says they all hate us, he’s using their narrative … he’s feeding their recruitment video,” Hayden said in the interview.
Trump’s rhetoric is not limited to threatening to bomb ISIS, but instead extends over onto all Muslims. Trump has proposed banning all Muslims, a religion that consists of 1.6 billion people, from entering the United States. In December, just days after more than a dozen people were shot and killed by terrorists in San Bernardino, California, Trump began calling for the ban against all Muslims.
“Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life.”
It is that sort of rhetoric that Hayden believes is feeding and fueling ISIS rather than being viewed as a credible threat.
Trump’s openly anti-Muslim statements have been questioned by more than just Hayden, especially as Muslims in the United States have seen an increase in violence and acts of harassment committed against them.
In the months after the San Bernardino shooting, as well as November’s deadly terror attacks in Paris, Muslims across the U.S. have seen an increase in violence and harassment. NBC reported on the increase, saying that “hate crimes targeting Muslims, their mosques and businesses, have tripled this year.”
All of that is also “good news” for ISIS, says California State University San Bernardino college professor Brian Levin, who was previously in law enforcement before entering academia. His statements to NBC echo those of Hayden.
“Among ISIS’ most prominent goals is painting the west as being incompatible with the Muslim faith and hostile toward Muslims who live there and reject the caliphate,” said Levin.
Just last month, an incident occurred in Washington, D.C., between a woman wearing a hijab and a Trump supporter. The Trump supporter allegedly called the woman wearing the hijab a terrorist and a “worthless piece of Muslim trash.”
It’s also been reported that a group of men in Kansas attacked a Muslim student while chanting “Trump, Trump, Trump!” and shouting, “Brown trash, go home!” to their victim. It was reported that the group of men also shouted that Trump will “make America great again.”
The fight can be seen in the video below.
Trump has continuously dismissed any concerns that his often xenophobic rants are perhaps fueling this increased violence — not just against Muslims, but against Mexicans, as well. In fact, Trump has shrugged off such incidents as two supporters who beat up a Hispanic man by saying they were simply passionate about his potential presidency.
“It would be a shame… I will say that people who are following me are very passionate. They love this country and they want this country to be great again. They are passionate.”
Retired United States Air Force four-star General Hayden, however, has deep concerns about Trump and his anti-Muslim speeches and proposed policies.
[Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images News]
