Trump slams 'Trojan horse' migrants, son sparks outrage
September 21, 2016  00:20
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Donald Trump's hardline stance on immigration after two bombings in the New York area again sparked debate on the White House campaign trail on Tuesday, as his son sparked a firestorm by comparing Syrian refugees to lethal candies.
The Republican presidential hopeful's uncompromising position on illegal migrants -- even calling them a dangerous "Trojan horse" who enter the country with the aim of doing harm -- is inextricably linked with his meteoric political rise.
Most Republicans approve of his tough talk, with polls showing that a majority of party members agreed with his call last December to bar Muslims from entering the United States.
Since then, Trump has refrained from specifically targeting Muslims, but he has championed police profiling of suspects and promised to bar immigrants and travellers from certain countries deemed dangerous, like Syria.
The candidate has repeatedly warned of the risks posed by Syrian refugees, citing the arrival in Europe of Islamic State operatives disguised as simple refugees, and says US immigration officials are not properly screening new arrivals.
"This is a question of qualify of life," Trump told a rally in key swing state Florida on Monday. "We want to make sure we are only admitting people in our country who love our country."
Trump's son Donald Jr, one of his surrogates on the campaign trail, has meanwhile courted controversy with a tweet comparing Syrian refugees to a bowl of multi-colored Skittles candy -- some of them lethal, but not to the naked eye.
"This image says it all," he said on Twitter, with a picture of a white bowl filled with the popular sweets.
Written above the image is: "If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you. Would you take a handful? That's our Syria refugee problem."
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