Jaguars owner Shad Khan unsurprisingly opposes Donald Trump’s immigration ban

Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan knows firsthand how beneficial immigration can be for the United States. It was 50 years ago that he arrived in the U.S. from Pakistan with $500 in his pocket and a job washing dishes for $1.20 an hour.

So it’s not surprising that Khan, a Muslim who became a U.S. citizen in 1991, is opposed to President Donald Trump’s executive order banning refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries.

“The bedrock of this country are immigration and really a great separation between church and state,” Khan told the New York Times. “Even for the country, it’s not good [to block] the tens of thousands of people who can contribute to the making of America.”

Khan, 66, made his fortune in automotive manufacturing, first rising to become engineering director of Flex-N-Gate before starting his own company, Bumper Works, in 1978. Two years later, he purchased Flex-N-Gate, which is now the sole supplier of bumpers for Toyota, among many other automobile companies.

Now Khan has an estimated net worth of $7.4 billion and is No. 70 on the Forbes 400 list.

But despite his religion and path to American citizenship, Khan said he voted for Trump in the election because he’s a registered Republican who supports the president’s economic policies. Still, he expected Trump to moderate his rhetoric on immigration after taking office and told the New York Times it’s now “kind of a sobering time for somebody like me.”

Khan’s comments on Trump’s policy are slightly more noteworthy because NFL figures typically dodge politics and controversy as much as possible. While the NBA has no shortage of players and owners ready to speak their minds, the NFL has a reputation for buttoned up and vanilla answers, although Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank also spoke against the policies of Trump this week.

The Jaguars owner hasn’t always stuck to that code and said that he has no regrets about recently supporting an anti-discrimination bill in Jacksonville. He also believes the NFL should do its best to impact Trump’s immigration policy.

“We have to look at it based on what can we do to make a difference,” Khan said. “And right now, there are enough forces in power and play that we have to see how this thing ends up.”

Khan’s purchase of the Jaguars was finalized in January 2012, nearly two years after he unsuccessfully attempted to buy the then-St. Louis Rams. He also is owner of Fulham F.C. of the English Football League Championship.