Saba Ahmed took the world by storm when she recently appeared on Fox News in order to discuss the idea, posited by Donald Trump, of closing down mosques in the wake of the Paris attacks.
It wasn’t her words that took over the Internet, however. It was what she was wearing.
Even more interesting? Saba Ahmed is a Republican, though she hasn’t always been one.
She spoke to The Slot and discussed her transition from Democrat to Republican:
“I switched parties in 2011,” she said.
“The more I studied my party platform, the more I realized that I aligned with Republican values more than Democratic ones.
I couldn’t justify abortion, for example, with what Islam preaches.
So I changed parties, although it’s been very challenging. They haven’t exactly been welcoming.”
Ahmed went further, suggesting that Muslims, in general, have much in common with the Republican party:
“We have so much more in common with Republicans.
We have conservative values: pro-life, in favor of traditional families.”
Saba Ahmed, who runs a group called the Republican Muslim Coalition, also spoke about the current crop of presidential candidates.
She hasn’t picked one to vote for yet, due to their views on Muslims:
“I haven’t picked my candidate, but we’re trying to work with all of them.
“All of them are pretty much the same when it comes to Islam—in other words, bad—but we want to change their perspective.”
Ahmed wants to take the Republican candidates to a mosque, so they can see Muslims engaged in prayer.
She even extended this offer to Donald Trump, who has said he supports the idea of creating a registry that Muslims would be required to join:
“I want to host him at Friday prayers. I want him to see how we pray.”
The original video of her appearance on Fox News has been viewed more than a million times.