Keith Self Sheds New Light On Bill First Reported on by the Daily Signal

Members of the Sharia Free America Caucus gathered Wednesday to promote legislation that would prevent U.S. courts and other adjudicative bodies from recognizing or enforcing Islamic law, commonly known as Sharia law, when it conflicts with the Constitution.

The legislation, introduced by Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, was first reported by The Daily Signal. The bill would prohibit federal courts and related entities from adopting foreign or religious legal systems that conflict with constitutional protections.

During the press conference, Self and fellow caucus members were joined by supporters of the legislation, who said the measure is necessary to safeguard constitutional rights and protect vulnerable individuals from practices associated with Sharia law.

Brigitte Gabriel, a Middle Eastern immigrant and founder of ACT for America, said she helped draft the legislation in part to protect women from abuse.

“This bill is for the protection and preservation of the lives of the thousands of Middle Eastern women who are brought here by their Islamic husbands who want to practice Sharia Law and continue practicing domestic violence against women,” Gabriel said.

Gabriel pointed to efforts in several states to limit the use of foreign legal systems that conflict with constitutional protections. She said similar safeguards could now be pursued at the federal level.

“We have worked so hard in passing ALAC, American Laws for American Courts, in 13 states, Texas being the most recent,” Gabriel said. “People flock from all over the world to enjoy the protections offered by the United States Constitution. We come here to enjoy freedoms without being beaten, killed or hijacked.”

Self previously told The Daily Signal that one of the caucus’ primary goals is to help states develop strategies to protect themselves from what members describe as the growing influence of Sharia law and the broader “Islamification” of the United States.

Currently, there is no federal law specifically prohibiting the application of foreign or religious laws that conflict with the Constitution.

Frank Gaffney, a longtime national security commentator who worked alongside Gabriel to advocate for the legislation, said public awareness of the issue has grown in recent years.

“I have been trying to raise awareness of this problem for decades,” Gaffney said. “I worked hard to make the American people understand the agenda of Sharia supremacists.”

“The American people must become acquainted with what the Sharia supremacist wants—his law instead of ours,” he continued. “The objective of the Sharia supremacist exercise is to submit the American people to follow their law instead of ours.”

Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, who served as President Donald Trump’s first national security adviser, also spoke at the event. Flynn argued that the legislation is important to preserving the nation’s founding principles.

“We’ve been working hard this last decade to bring this law to fruition,” Flynn said. “We are at our 250th year, and in order for us to preserve this country for another 250 years we have to follow only one document, the U.S. Constitution.”

Flynn said passage of the legislation is necessary “to preserve that beautiful flag behind us, to save America, and save freedom for the rest of our Western civilized world.”

The bill is part of a broader effort by the Sharia Free America Caucus, co-founded by two Texas lawmakers, to advance constitutional safeguards against the application of foreign or religious legal systems in the United States.