Not too many months ago, Donald Trump famously called himself “the least racist person” while speaking to Don Lemon. At the time, he was defending his call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States. He then argued with Bill O’Reilly, who tried to talk some sense into Trump and had no success at all. The great negotiator was committed to keeping Muslim widows and children out of the country, even as Obama mocked him for this stance. And all the while, Trump said his Muslim friends agreed with the proposed ban.
Trump fancies himself a street-smart guy who predicted Osama Bin Laden was trouble because the huge Trump brain knows all. Well, the noggin decided to make an allowance for the good Muslims because he thinks there may be a few out there. This change of heart bestows itself upon London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who was sworn into office on Saturday, thus becoming the city’s first Muslim mayor. This apparently surprised the real estate mogul, for he walked back his anti-Muslim rhetoric for this special occasion:
“There will always be exceptions. I was happy to see [he was elected]. I think it’s a very good thing, and I hope he does a very good job because frankly that would be very, very good. Because I think if he does a great job, it will really — you lead by example, always lead by example. If he does a good job and frankly if he does a great job, that would be a terrific thing.”
Trump was, of course, talking about the travel ban and how Khan could be an “exception.” But he also hopes Khan could be one of the good Muslims, who could lead the other ones to goodness, as well. Aaand Khan is not impressed. During an interview with Time, he mainly discussed how he hopes to combat religious extremism using his status as mayor. Trump’s ban came up in conversation, so Kahn expressed his intention to visit the U.S. before the election. He has no desire to mess with the ban nonsense if Trump becomes president. That’s a statement if there ever was one.