In her first interview ahead of the publication of her new book, Adios, America! conservative commentator Ann Coulter stood by her claim that Americans should “fear immigrants” from Mexico “more than ISIS,” the extremist group making gains across Iraq and Syria.

“I have a little tip. If you don’t want to be killed by ISIS, don’t go to Syria. If you don’t want to be killed by a Mexican, there’s nothing I can tell you,” Coulter said in an interview Tuesday with Fusion’s Jorge Ramos.

After several seconds of silence from a rather stunned audience, she added, “Very easy to not be killed by ISIS. Don’t fly to Syria.”

“Are you really saying…we’re talking about 40 million immigrants in this country?” Ramos said. When he pressed Coulter further, she suggested that certain “cultures are obviously deficient.”

“There are a lot of problems with that culture,” she said of Mexico. “Hopefully it can be changed. But we can share our culture with other nations without bringing all of their people here.”

“America is the best in the world,” she added, “and we are about to lose it. Everyone who lives here is going to lose that.” She said those who’d be “most hurt” by the introduction of new cultures to the United States would be “vulnerable” groups like women and children — and animals and plants.

Coulter and Ramos squared off Tuesday in an interview in which they debated how to reform the U.S.’s immigration laws.

Coulter also took questions from the studio audience. After Coulter gave an answer to a previous questioner in which she said young, undocumented immigrants should be barred from paying in-state tuition at state university systems, audience member Gaby Pacheco asked Coulter a more simple question.

“Can I give you a hug?” she said.

“I wouldn’t today,” Coulter replied, laughing. “I’m recovering from the worst flu I’ve ever had.”

Pacheco, who identified herself as an undocumented immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for more than 22 years, told Coulter she had gotten a hug from Joe Arpaio, the Arizona sheriff who is known for his anti-immigration views.

Full interview airs Tuesday May 26 at 10p ET, only on Fusion.