Donald Trump, the Republican Presidential candidate for 2016, is unapologetic for not standing up for President Barack Obama.
During an event sponsored by the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, a man stated to Trump that President Obama is a Muslim. The remark has raged many people but Trump says that it is not his duty to defend Obama.
Trump reasons that he may have faced criticism if he defended Obama. Trump also recalls an incident during the Presidential campaign of 2008 when John McCain, the Republic nominee, took away the microphone from a woman who said that she did not trust Obama because he was a Muslim. Trump says that the incident was "a little bit harsh."
Trump also claims that he does not have any reservations in appointing a Muslim-American to the cabinet if he becomes the President of the U.S.
Trump has also tweeted that he is not obligated to defend Obama every time a controversial comment is made.
Am I morally obligated to defend the president every time somebody says something bad or controversial about him? I don't think so!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2015
The Republican Presidential candidate also tweeted that he doubts that Obama would have defended him if a controversial remark was made against him.
If someone made a nasty or controversial statement about me to the president, do you really think he would come to my rescue? No chance! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2015
Trump remains unapologetic for not defending Obama; he also slammed the President for not protecting the religious liberty of Christians in the U.S.
Christians need support in our country (and around the world), their religious liberty is at stake! Obama has been horrible, I will be great
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2015
Martin O'Malley, the Democratic Presidential candidate for 2016 elections says that Trump did have the obligation of correcting the remark against Obama.
"I think any of us who are in the public arena, especially for the most important office of the presidency of the United States, have an obligation to correct errors and hateful things when people say them," says O'Malley. "I mean, it certainly was a different reaction that Donald Trump gave than somebody like John McCain would give when a person wrongly maligns people of the Muslim faith or tries to mischaracterize the President's faith. But I'll leave that to Trump."
Trump's action about the remark made for Obama remains a question of heated debate in the current political situation of the U.S. however, some well-known members of the Republican party - Jeb Bush, Chris Christie and Lindsey Graham - believe that Trump should have stood up for Obama.
