President says U.S. is ‘one of the largest Muslim countries in the world’
President Obama told a French TV station that the United States would be ranked as 'one of the largest Muslim countries in the world.' Actually, the U.S. Muslim population ranks 38th.
As reported in Le Monde, during in interview with a French television station leading up to his speech this week in Cairo, President Obama said the Muslim population in the United States would make it “one of the largest Muslim countries in the world.”
From the New York Times:
In an interview with Laura Haim on Canal Plus, a French television station, Mr. Obama noted that the United States also could be considered as “one of the largest Muslim countries in the world.” He sought to downplay the expectations of the speech, but he said he hoped the address would raise awareness about Muslims.
Well, actually, that’s not true. According to Roger L. Simon:
I guess it depends on what your definition of “one of” is. According to Wikipedia, the US ranks thirty-eighth with a Muslim population of some 4.5 million (about one and half percent of our population – others, such as Pew, see it as even smaller). Indonesia is first at over two hundred and seven million.
Simon also notes that the CIA Factbook puts the U.S. Muslim population at about 0.6 percent. That’s about 1.8 million people.
Sources:
Le Monde, June 2, 2009
Obama : “les Etats-Unis sont l’un des plus grands pays musulmans”
The Caucus, New York Times, June 2, 2009
Obama Says U.S. Could Be Seen as a Muslim Country, Too
Roger L. Simon, June 2, 2009
Obama practices taqiyya on French TV
Hot Air, June 3, 2009
CIA Wold Factbook
