The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has sent a letter to Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-MN) in response to her recent allegations of Muslim Brotherhood influence within the U.S. government. expressing stating that the organization is “eternally grateful that, like Sen. Joseph McCarthy before you, your power is limited, enumerated and constrained by our nation’s constitution.’ According to a CAIR press release:
WASHINGTON, July 19, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today sent a letter to Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-MN) in response to her recent calls for investigations of American Muslims who are participating in the democratic process. In the letter, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad wrote in part: ‘We remain eternally grateful that, like Sen. Joseph McCarthy before you, your power is limited, enumerated and constrained by our nation’s constitution.’ Awad also wrote: ‘Your letters challenging the loyalty of patriotic American Muslims based on discredited anti-Muslim conspiracy theories can only be described as devoid of a sense of decency. These are American citizens asking what they can do for their nation. ‘Among those you accuse, Mrs. Huma Abedin helps the Secretary of State represent the best interests of our nation overseas. The Society of Former Special Agents last year honored Mohamed Elibiary for his ‘extraordinary contributions to specific cases in support of the FBI’s counterterrorism mission.’ Dalia Mogahed was appointed to the president’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and has advised the Department of Homeland Security. Imam Mohamed Magid enjoys widespread interfaith respect and has also advised the Department of Homeland Security. ‘The honorable public service of these individuals deserves better treatment than political theatrics characterized by half-truths, overblown accusations and guilt by association.’ The Washington-based Muslim civil rights organization’s letter also condemned Bachmann’s rhetorical attacks on the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and Muslim Advocates.
A post from last week reported that Senator McCain has defended Abedin against allegations by Congresswoman Michele Bachman that she is an example of Muslim Brotherhood influence within the U.S. government. A previous post reported that U.S. Congressman Keith Ellison had called Bachman’s allegations of Muslim Brotherhood influence on the U.S. government “scare-mongering” and compared her efforts to those of Senator Joseph McCarthy. A post from earlier this month reported on the allegations by Bachman and three other Congressmen. Former FEDERAL prosecutor Andrew McCarthy has written an article titled “Questions about “Huma Abedin” that examines the the appropriateness of raising security concerns in connection with Huma Abedin.
In February 2010, the GMBDW reported exclusively that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had addressed students at the Dar El-Hekma women’s college in Saudi Arabia, known to have been co-founded and patronized by an individual designated as a terrorist by the U.S as well as by important Saudi bankers and members of the Bin Laden family. The post also noted that the Vice Dean of institutional advancement at Dar El-Hekma was Saleha M. Abedin who was also one of the founders of the College, as well being the mother of Huma Abedin. Congresswoman Bachman cited some of the same evidence about Huma Abedin’s father in a letter of response to Ellison.
Documents released in the Holy Land Trial have revealed that the founders and current leaders of CAIR were part of the Palestine Committee of the Muslim Brotherhood as well as identifying the organization itself as being part of the US. Brotherhood. A recent post discussed an interview with the Deputy leader of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in which he confirms a relationship between his organization and CAIR. Investigative research posted on GMBDW had determined that CAIR had it origins in the U.S. Hamas infrastructure and CAIR and its leaders have a long history of defending almost all individuals accused of terrorism by the US. government, frequently calling such prosecutions a “war on Islam.” In 2009, a US federal judge ruled “The Government has produced ample evidence to establish the associations of CAIR, ISNA and NAIT with HLF, the Islamic Association for Palestine (“IAP”), and with Hamas.”
For more on CAIR’s history of support for terrorism, go here.
MPAC, headquartered in Southern California, was established initially in 1986 as the Political Action Committee of the Islamic Center of Southern California whose key leaders likely had their origins in the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. Since that time, MPAC has functioned as the political lobbying arm of the U.S. Brotherhood. MPAC has opposed virtually every count-terror initiative undertaken or proposed by the U.S. government. At times this opposition was said to be on civil-rights grounds but, just as often, MPAC claimed that U.S. counter-terror efforts were aimed at the U.S. Muslim community itself. MPAC has consistently supported and facilitated terrorism by supporting terrorist organizations and, more broadly, constructing an elaborate ideology defending the use of violence by Islamists and Islamist organizations. More than any other U.S. Muslim Brotherhood organization, MPAC has developed extensive relationships with the U.S. government which have included numerous meetings with the Department of Justice and the FBI.