Presidential Republican nominees Donald Trump and Ted Cruz get their anti-Muslim rhetoric from Islamophobic leaders in the US. These leaders belong to various think tanks and policy groups and have long held anti-Muslim ideas which they have promoted throughout the years via books and the conservative media, and is now on display in the presidential race. Their anti-Muslim sentiments tend to lean a bit too far to the right side of politics, allowing their favorite candidates to come into contact with their Islamophobic fan bases who have been hyped up since the attacks of 9/11 and recently by the Brussels attacks, in order to tap into their uncharted votes. SPLC reports: Surprisingly, he also called for a “need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.” Such statements, coming from a leading presidential candidate, are only the latest examples of anti-Muslim rhetoric making the jump from the firing of hate groups to mainstream political discourse. But such jumps are not random and, in fact, have come after years of planning. The Center for Security Policy, a hate group that serves as the anti-Muslim movement’s premier think tank, has worked hard to earn the ear of elected officials and has [...]