Trump national security adviser once said fear of Muslims is 'rational'

An old tweet Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, one of president-elect Donald Trump's top national security advisers during the campaign, received renewed attention attention this week as he's considered for a top job in Trump's administration.

"Fear of Muslims is RATIONAL: please forward this to others: the truth fears no questions," he tweeted in February, including a link to a YouTube video that claims the religion of Islam wants "80% of people enslaved or exterminated."

Flynn wrote a book this year called "The Field of Fight: How We Can Win the Global War Against Radical Islam and Its Allies." He was at one point under consideration to be Trump's running mate in the general election.

He's now reportedly Trump's top pick for national security adviser in his new administration.

Flynn was formerly the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, and he spent years fighting terrorist groups in Iraq and Afghanistan. Flynn was fired from the DIA in 2014, and he claims it's because he took a stand about "radical Islam."

There was much debate about the term "radical Islamic terror" during the election, with many Republicans saying it's necessary to identify terrorism as such and Democrats warning that it plays into terrorists' hands by demonizing Muslims, the vast majority of whom are peaceful.