Nikki Haley in 2016 FactCheck

On Immigration: FactCheck: US does have history of religion-based exclusion

Gov. Haley criticized Donald Trump's immigration policy of excluding Muslims, saying, "we've never in the history of this country passed any laws or done anything based on...religion." Is that true? We checked and readily found numerous cases:

Until 1828, Jews were disallowed from voting in Maryland.
In 1838, all Mormons were expelled from Missouri by the Governor's order.
The Immigration Act of 1924 restricted immigration from Southern & Eastern Europe (which are majority Catholic) in favor of Northern & Western Europe (which are majority Protestant).
In 1939, the S.S. St. Louis, carrying 908 Jewish refugees from Hitler's Germany, was denied entrance to the US.

In summary, Haley is incorrect about the US history of religious laws. And Haley's focus on religious exclusion implies acceptance of country-based exclusion (like disallowing Syrian refugees). A country-based policy echoes that 1924 policy--its intent was to exclude Catholics, but using a more subtle method. Source: OnTheIssues FactCheck: 2016 State of the Union GOP response Jan 13, 2016

The above quotations are from Fact-checking on 2016 presidential, gubernatorial, and Senate campaigns. Click here for other excerpts from Fact-checking on 2016 presidential, gubernatorial, and Senate campaigns. Click here for other excerpts by Nikki Haley. Click here for a profile of Nikki Haley.
Please consider a donation to OnTheIssues.org! Click for details -- or send donations to: 1770 Mass Ave. #630, Cambridge MA 02140 E-mail: submit@OnTheIssues.org (We rely on your support!)

Page last updated: Dec 08, 2018