Key Point: “In 2017, President Donald Trump triggered national outrage for implementing a so-called Muslim travel ban, blocking U.S. admissions for travelers from predominantly Muslim countries. 

“But even before Trump suggested such a ban, a low-profile congressman named Ron DeSantis quietly introduced what amounted to an early version of that travel order. … which would have blocked entry of refugees from certain countries ‘if the alien is a national of, has habitually resided in, or is claiming refugee status due to events in any country containing terrorist-controlled territory.’” 

NBC News: Before Trump, a low-profile congressman named Ron DeSantis sought a ‘Muslim travel ban’

By: Natasha Korecki

• In 2017, President Donald Trump triggered national outrage for implementing a so-called Muslim travel ban, blocking U.S. admissions for travelers from predominantly Muslim countries. The move prompted widespread protests and legal challenges, and Joe Biden rescinded it in one of his first actions as president.

• But even before Trump suggested such a ban, a low-profile congressman named Ron DeSantis quietly introduced what amounted to an early version of that travel order. 

• On Dec. 1, 2015, DeSantis — now the governor of Florida and a Republican presidential candidate — introduced the Terrorist Refugee Infiltration Prevention Act, which would have blocked entry of refugees from certain countries “if the alien is a national of, has habitually resided in, or is claiming refugee status due to events in any country containing terrorist-controlled territory.”

• That history is prescient today as DeSantis seeks the GOP presidential nomination amid turmoil in the Middle East. He has already said he would not accept refugees from Gaza into the U.S., and Muslim groups warn that he is no different from Trump when it comes to his policies toward majority-Muslim countries. Those policies, they say, damage relations at home and further fuel the potential for threats and violence already targeted at the community.

• Trump, the far-and-away front-runner in the Republican presidential race, has said he will seek to reimpose his travel ban — which Biden overturned after the Supreme Court upheld it — and would expand it to include refugees from Gaza.

• DeSantis’ campaign would not say whether DeSantis would seek to reimpose Trump’s travel ban or a version of it should he be elected. But a spokesman did say DeSantis stood by his previously introduced bill.

• DeSantis is already under fire with the Muslim community after he used the phrase “so-called Islamophobia” on the debate stage on Nov. 8, seeming to raise doubt over whether Islamophobia was a real issue. 

• The words were deeply offensive to members of the Muslim community, who are grappling with hate incidents since the Israel-Hamas war began, Alzayat said. He said the phrasing and talk of Muslim bans only intensify an already fraught issue, potentially putting Muslims in harm’s way.

• DeSantis’ campaign said he stood by his comments. 

• Kakli noted that DeSantis has called for banning pro-Palestinian groups on Florida college campuses, saying he is “trying to silence voices that he doesn’t agree with.”

• DeSantis’ comment also drew a rebuke from the White House and from the Biden campaign, which told NBC News: “Ron DeSantis’ xenophobic, hateful rhetoric contributes to the type of violence and hate crimes we’ve seen over recent weeks,” campaign spokesman Ammar Moussa said. “It’s racist, extreme, and deeply un-American — and as President Biden has said, has no place in our nation.”