During a discussion on Islamic extremism on Friday’s broadcast of HBO’s “Real Time,” author Sam Harris argued that while a Muslim ban is a bad idea, and the US should take in Syrian refugees who don’t pose a security threat, “the left has allied itself with Islamists and closet Islamists.” And it’s not fascist or racist “to not want to import people into your society who think cartoonists should be killed for drawing the prophet, right? That’s a totally rational thing not to want, and the left has been demonizing anyone who will talk about this.”

Harris discussed his Twitter feud with Women’s March co-chair Linda Sarsour, and said, “Well, this is the problem. So, the left has allied itself with Islamists and closet Islamists.”

Later in the discussion, host Bill Maher asked, “Why is it that liberals here seem to just really want to, from a gut level, jump immediately always to, we’re just as bad? Because we’ve been bad. We’ve done a lot of bad things. But, on this issue, especially right now, at this point in history, not every culture is equally bad.”

Harris answered that if Scientologists or Mormons were acting the way that Islamists did, people would have less patience for them, and there’s “a massive double standard here.”

Maher then stated, “But also, you’re not automatically a racist if you have concerns about assimilation.” Harris agreed, adding, “[Y]ou don’t have to be a fascist, or a racist, or, even a Trumpian to not want to import people into your society who think cartoonists should be killed for drawing the prophet, right? That’s a totally rational thing not to want, and the left has been demonizing anyone who will talk about this.”

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