Mitt Romney said Tuesday that Donald Trump misfired by calling for a blanket ban on admitting Muslims into the U.S.
“On Muslims, @RealDonaldTrump fired before aiming,” he tweeted of the GOP presidential front-runner.
{mosads}“Speaker Ryan is on target,” added Romney, the GOP’s 2012 presidential nominee, referencing the Wisconsin lawmaker’s response to Trump.
Trump called for a “total and complete shutdown” of federal processes letting the Islamic faithful within America’s borders Monday night.
The outspoken billionaire added that the temporary freeze is essential, given the ongoing danger of jihadist violence.
Ryan earned applause Tuesday by publicly rebuking the real estate tycoon’s controversial remarks.
“This is not who we are as a party or a country,” he told his House GOP colleagues during a closed-door meeting at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, D.C.
Ryan then refused comment on whether he would definitively support Trump should the businessman become the Republican presidential nominee in 2016.
“I’m going to support whomever the Republican nominee is, and I’m going to stand up for what I believe as I do that,” he said.
Trump’s idea follows last week’s mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., that resulted in the deaths of 14 people and 21 wounded.
The FBI announced Monday that the alleged shooters — Syed Farook, 28, and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, 27 — likely had ties with radical Islam before the attack.