Losses in Midterms for Candidates Who Supported Islamists
Losses in Midterms for Candidates Who Supported Islamists, Clarion Project, Ryan Mauro, November 5, 2014
(That’s good, but is there a significant causal relationship and will it impact Obama’s foreign policy? I doubt it. — DM)
Michigan Governor Rick Snyder (l) was opposed by prominent Islamists Omar Suleiman (upper right), Zahra Billoo (bottom right) and Hatem Bazian for comments the governor made at an Islamists conference in support of Israel.
Yesterday’s congressional elections resulted in losses for numerous candidates who have supported American Islamists. The biggest defeat came in the form of the re-election of Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, who became the Islamists’ top target after he briefly endorsed Israel’s right-to-exist at a major Islamist conference.
Failure to Stop Michigan Governor’s Re-Election
In August, the Clarion Project reported on Governor Snyder’s decision to speak at the annual conference of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), a U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entity whose events are full of radical speakers.
Snyder had resisted pressure to drop his speaking engagement and his office unbelievably defended ISNA as a moderate organization that accepts Israel’s existence. At the event, Snyder praised the Islamist-filled speaker lineup.
However, one sentence the governor uttered triggered a ferocious blowback: “I’m a strong supporter of Israel and believe in its right to exist.” Islamists close to ISNA blasted him as anti-Muslim and disrespectful. ISNA itself then issued an action alert calling on Muslims to contact his office.
Despite the Islamist backlash against him, Snyder was re-elected.
Illinois Governor’s Re-Election Bid Fails
A second blow to Islamist political influence was delivered with the defeat of Illinois Governor Pat Quinn.
Quinn had praised the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entity with documented links to Hamas. CAIR’s executive director recentlyendorsed sharia governance and rebuilding a caliphate.
In December 2013, Quinn was the keynote speaker for the radical convention of the Islamic Circle of North America and the Muslim American Society, two groups with extensive histories of radicalism.
When Quinn was introduced, the speaker recalled meeting him at the Hamas-linked Mosque Foundation and declared, “This is the kind of governor that we support and that we like.”
Race for Maryland Governorship
A third defeat for the Islamists was the loss by of Lieutenant-Governor Anthony Brown in his bid to be Maryland’governor.
Brown spoke for a CAIR event in May even though official FBI policy prohibits participation in CAIR fundraisers due to its Hamas links.
Maryland’s current governor, Martin O’Malley, is a possible presidential candidate and CAIR has used O’Malley/Brown officialsfor fundraising, including even their attorney general.
The O’Malley-Brown administration also endorsed a $100-million mega-mosque project in Maryland supported by the Islamist government of Turkey. The project is also backed by ICNA and ISNA leaders.
O’Malley was also the chairman of the Department of Homeland Security’s Working Group on Violent Extremism that reviewed counter-terrorism training. The committee included officials from these same Islamist groups and produced Islamist-friendly guidelines.
Scott Brown Fails to Win Senate Seat
Former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown failed to win his race for senator in New Hampshire.
In the summer of 2012, Brown was one of the Republican leaders who questioned the integrity of the five members of Congress who asked for investigations into the influence on the U.S. government of Muslim Brotherhood-linked individuals and activists.
At the time, Brown said accusations about Huma Abedin, who has documented Islamist ties and was then Secretary of State Clinton’s Deputy Chief of Staff, were “out-of-line” and have “no place in our public discourse.”
Crist Loses Bid for Florida Governorship
Charlie Crist, who was the governor of Florida from 2007-2011, failed yesterday in a very tight race to return to that office.
As reported by counter-terrorism expert Patrick Poole, an Islamist cleric, Muhammad Musri of the Islamic Society of Central Florida, was on Governor Crist’s Faith-Based and Communications Advisory Council and on his 2010 Sunshine Consensus Committee.
Musri helped fundraise for the Hamas-linked Viva Palestina group, which is led by anti-American British activist George Galloway.
Crist also received $1,404 from three CAIR sources in 2010 for his failed Senate bid.
Possible Defeat of Virginia Senator Mark Warner
At press time, Virginia Senator Mark Warner leads by about half of one percent in a race that was written off as a shoe-in for him. There will almost certainly be a recount and a legal battle that will decide the election’s result.
In September 2011, Senator Warner sent a videotaped message of support to an event in Virginia that honored prominent Islamist Jamal Barinji, who was instrumental in setting up the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood network.
Barzinji was identified as a Muslim Brotherhood member by an FBI informant in 1987. He was a leader of the Brotherhood’s main American fronts. He was the president of the Muslim Students Association in 1972, a founder of the North American Islamic Trustand a senior leader of ISNA.
He was also the vice president of the International Institute of Islamic Thought and helped establish the radical Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center. In 2003, Barzinji’s home was raided as part of a terrorism-financing investigation.
Special Agent David Kane said in a sworn affidavit that Barzinji is closely linked to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas terrorist groups. The affidavit says he held seven positions in other organizations under investigation and is close to Sami al-Arian, who was convicted of being a secret Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader.
The planned prosecution of Barzinji was dropped under the Obama Administration.
Recipients of Islamist Donations
The Clarion Project listed 11 candidates who received donations from Islamists this election cycle based on data compiled by the Islamist Money in Politics project.
The candidates mentioned have not all supported CAIR or other Islamists, nor is there proof of each one’s knowledge of the transaction or source. Nonetheless, the small donations are relevant facts that must be mentioned because Islamists don’t donate to every candidate. These donations had a purpose.
As we previously wrote, four candidates that received donations from Islamist officials lost in their primaries.
The candidates who received small donations from Islamists and lost yesterday were:
- Arkansas Senator Mark Pryor;
- Michigan candidate Terri Lynn Land (whose opponent also had Islamist donations);
- Michigan candidate Bobby McKenzie;
- Minnesota candidate Mike Obermueller;
- West Virginia Rep. Nick Rahall;
- Florida Rep. Joe Garcia
The candidates who received Islamist donations and were victorious yesterday include:
- Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison;
- Indiana Rep. Andre Carson;
- Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly;
- New York Rep. Charles Rangel;
- Michigan Rep. Gary Peters (for Senate);
- Florida Rep. Gwen Graham;
- New Jersey Rep. Bill Pascrell;
- Arizona Rep. Kyrsten Sinema;
- Maryland Rep. Chris Van Hollen;
- Michigan Rep. Daniel Kildee;
- Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Doyle;
- Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger;
- Kansas Senator Pat Roberts;
- Minnesota Senator Al Franken
- New Jersey Senator Cory Booker.
At press time, it was unknown if California Rep. Mike Honda has won re-election, but victory is anticipated.
Conclusion
Candidates do not need to be Islamists themselves to be influenced by them. In some cases, they may not even know the extremist backgrounds of the Islamists courting them.
By appearing as “moderates” only interested in responsible civic activism, leaders from groups like CAIR are able to fly under the officials’ radar and influence policy and arrange mutually beneficial praises and photo-ops.
Of course, promises of donations, political support or positive media coverage add extra incentives.
It is our responsibility to inform these officials and candidates of their backgrounds. Those who don’t change course must be shown that that there is a political price to pay for their inattentiveness, selfishness and narrow-mindedness.
Explore posts in the same categories: Islam, Multiculturalism, Obama, U.S. 2014 elections, U.S. CongressTags: American Islamists, Islam, Islamists
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WarSclerotic 
November 5, 2014 at 6:41 PM
DM,
Hussein’s foreign policy is likely to get even more extreme now that he’s a lame duck the next 2 years and can’t dictate whatever he wants from Congress anymore.
What I’m much more interested though is in Netanyahu’s foreign policy. He’s the one who will have to decide whether to stop Iran in short order before it’s too late!
November 5, 2014 at 7:40 PM
Obama may well try, but the Congress decides how much to budget for what. If that is done skillfully, it can have a significant and perhaps even substantial impact on foreign policy.
There have been rumblings of impeachment, and a House majority might vote a bill of impeachment. However, under Article I of the Constitution, the President cannot be convicted by the Senate without the affirmative vote of two thirds of the members present. While perhaps possible, that seems unlikely.
It seems likely that PM Netanyahu feels quite relieved by the anti-Obama election results. However, he still needs to regain popular support in Israel. Has an Israeli consensus built for an attack on Iran’s nukes? Will it? I don’t know. Nor do I know whether an attack is now technologically and militarily feasible.