Democratic Congresswoman: "Between 5 And 20%" Of Muslims Willing To Use Terrorism To Institute Caliphate

"We know that there is a small group, and we don’t know how big that is — it can be anywhere between 5 and 20%, from the people that I speak to — that Islam is their religion and who have a desire for a caliphate and to institute that in any way possible." UPDATE: In a statement, Sanchez said, "I strongly support the Muslim community in America and believe that the overwhelming majority of Muslims do not support terrorism or ISIS.

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California Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez said on Wednesday that "between 5 and 20%" of Muslims "have a desire for a caliphate and to institute that in any way possible," including the use of terrorism.

"But certainly, we know that there is a small group, and we don't know how big that is — it can be anywhere between 5 and 20%, from the people that I speak to — that Islam is their religion and who have a desire for a caliphate and to institute that in anyway possible, and in particular go after what they consider Western norms — our way of life," Sanchez said on "PoliticKING with Larry King."

Sanchez, who is running for Barbara Boxer's open Senate seat, added that this group of Muslims was "willing to use and they do use terrorism."

"They are not content enough to have their way of looking at the world, they want to put their way on everybody in the world," she said. "And again, I don't know how big that is, and depending on who you talk to, but they are certainly — they are willing to go to extremes. They are willing to use and they do use terrorism."

Sanchez added that they were using terrorism "in the name a very wrong way of looking at Islam."

UPDATE

In a statement, Sanchez said, “I strongly support the Muslim community in America and believe that the overwhelming majority of Muslims do not support terrorism or ISIS. We must enlist the voices of the Muslim community in our fight against ISIS instead of alienating them through fear-mongering and discrimination.”

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