BuzzFeed News Reporter

Attorney General nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions said he would not support a ban on Muslim immigrants to the US based solely on religion — despite President-elect Donald Trump saying such a ban should be in place.

Sessions’ testimony came during his first day of confirmation hearings on Tuesday, when Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont asked if he agreed with Trump.

“The President-elect has repeatedly asserted his intention to institute a ban on Muslim immigrants to the United States,” Sen. Leahy said.

Leahy then referred to a non-binding resolution in December of 2015 in the Senate Judiciary Committee that stated the US would not institute religious tests for immigrants to the US — a resolution which Sessions had voted against.

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