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Republican Muslim Leader Wants Trump To Address Religious Prejudice

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Now let's hear a voter who thinks President Trump is off to a good start. We reached her by Skype, and she said she is looking for a stronger economy and lower taxes.

SABA AHMED: He has focused on the economy, creating jobs - things that he was elected for. Obviously, it's causing a lot of stir in Washington because we're not used to having so much change so fast.

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This Trump voter's name is Saba Ahmed. She is an immigrant. She was a girl when she came to the United States from Pakistan. She says she learned conservative values as a Muslim, which is why she became a Republican.

INSKEEP: She works as a patent examiner for the federal government, and she also leads a group that is called the Republican Muslim Coalition. She says she's closely followed one of the president's earliest moves, an effort to ban travel from seven majority-Muslim nations. She is willing to believe it was well-intended just badly executed.

AHMED: It didn't have the legal review that it should have had, and it targeted a lot of green card holders and dual citizens. And it caused a lot of mess for a bunch of people, and that's why it was put on hold by the court. But I'm still hopeful that the administration is going to take this much more seriously and, going forward, will enact policies that will help make America safer.

INSKEEP: Now the leader of the Republican Muslim Coalition wants to hear something from her president.

AHMED: I am also concerned about how he will be addressing hate crimes that are increasing against various religious minority, including the Jewish community, the Indian-American community and obviously Muslim-Americans. I hope to see him be a president for all people, regardless of our religion, race or ethnic origin. And we hope that he will address that.

GREENE: The voice of Saba Ahmed - she's one of the voices we're hearing this morning as we get ready to listen to the president's address to the joint session of Congress tonight. Saba is president and founder of the Republican Muslim Coalition. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.