CAIR-WA denounces Trump’s remarks on Somali immigrants
Dec 3, 2025, 1:40 PM
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a meeting of his Cabinet in the Cabinet Room of the White House. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images)
(Photo: Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images)
The Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) condemned recent comments by President Donald Trump about Somali immigrants and Somali Americans, calling them “vile” and an insult to immigrant communities.
CAIR-WA issued the statement after Trump referred to Somali immigrants as “garbage” during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, saying he did not want them in the United States.
“When they come from hell, and they complain and do nothing but b****, we don’t want them in our country. Let them go back to where they came from and fix it,” Trump said.
RELATED STORIES
Trump Administration escalates immigration enforcement
His remarks came as his administration began a new Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation targeting Somali immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region. He also singled out Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who came to the U.S. as a Somali refugee.
“Washington proudly holds one of the largest Somali-American populations in the nation, and President Trump’s comments are an insult to not only that community, but all immigrants,” said Imraan Siddiqi, CAIR-WA’s executive director. “The Somali community is an amazing success story, with political leaders, entrepreneurs, attorneys, and many hard-working individuals who keep our airport and ports running.”
Mr. Trump’s latest remarks came on the same day an alleged gunman, identified as an Afghan national, pleaded not guilty to murder and assault charges in the shooting of two National Guard troops in Washington, D.C.
Federal investigators allege 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal dove cross-country from his residence in Bellingham to D.C., where he allegedly shot and killed Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically wounded Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24.
The Trump Administration has ratcheted up its anti-immigrant stance in the wake of the shooting. On Tuesday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services directed the agency to “place a hold on all [asylum applications], regardless of the alien’s country of nationality, pending a comprehensive review.”
Read more of Aaron Granillo’s stories here.
Follow @https://twitter.com/aaronkirofm
