{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://yoho.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/paul-ryan-joins-chorus-opposing-trump-s-muslim-ban", "Paul Ryan joins chorus opposing Trumps Muslim ban", "2015-12-08", "2015", "2015-12", "Republican", "House", "FL", "Ted Yoho", "Y000065", "yoho.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "House Speaker Paul D. Ryan on Tuesday joined the chorus of Republican voices decrying presidential candidate Donald Trumps call to block all Muslims from entering the United States  but stopped short of saying he would reject Trump were he to become the GOP nominee.\nRyan said he typically does not comment on the Republican presidential race but felt compelled to make an exception, then proceeded to denounce Trumps comments in some of the strongest terms yet heard from a top Republican leader.\nFreedom of religion is a fundamental constitutional principle. Its a founding principle of this country, Ryan told reporters following aclosed-door morning meeting at the Republican National Committee. This is not conservatism. What was proposed yesterday is not what this party stands for. And more importantly, its not what this country stands for.\n[Sign up for The Daily 202, The Washington Posts new political tipsheet]\nRyan (R-Wis.)said it is incumbent on Republican leaders to stand up and defend what conservatism is and what the Republican party stands for.\nIm not concerned about lasting damage to the party; Im concerned about standing up for our countrys principles, he said.\nBut Ryan would not rule out backing Trump if hebecomes the Republican presidential nominee: Im going to support whoever the Republican nominee is, and Im going to stand up for what I believe in as I do that.\nRyan addressed Trumps remarks during the conference meeting as well, according to a person present at the gathering, Rep. Matt Salmon of Arizona.\nThat is not who we are as a party; that is not who we are as a country, Salmon quoted Ryan as saying to his colleagues.\nRepublicans leaving the conference meeting were mostly critical of Trumps proposal.\nRep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, said the comments were not helpful but declined to say that they might help the Islamic State recruit adherents. I dont think ISIS needs any help recruiting, he said.\nRep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.), one of the Houses more conservative members, was even more critical, calling the proposal unconstitutional.\nWe cant put that kind of a test on anybody, he said. Its not about anti-Muslim, its about anti-terrorism, period.\nBut Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), perhaps the Houses fiercest advocate of tighter border policies, would not dismiss Trumps proposal out of hand.\nWe have to respect the rights of citizenship here in America, he said. Thats a constitutional principle that I wouldnt compromise on. Other than that, Mr. Trump has given some of us a little more room to operate.\nHe added: We have a constitutional right to determine who comes to America and we can set out any criteria we want from a constitutional perspective, so lets have a debate on how we protect America.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://yoho.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/paul-ryan-joins-chorus-opposing-trump-s-muslim-ban"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5547608491033316, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}