Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Who CAIRs? You Should Care

Americans are starting to fight back against fundamentalist Islam. Oklahoma passed a law preventing its courts from adopting Sharia law in their decisions. Tennessee made it a crime to support those who plan, finance or commit acts of terror. And Rep. Peter King (R-NY) plans hearings on radical Islam. All of this has been done over the fierce opposition of a lobbying group called the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). But who is CAIR really?

CAIR calls itself a “civil rights” group and claims to be working to protect Muslims from discrimination. But their words and deeds tell a different story. For example, here is CAIR co-founder Omar Ahmad explaining that CAIR’s goal is to impose Sharia law in America:

“Islam isn’t in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant. The Koran should be the highest authority in America.”
And here is CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper agreeing: “I wouldn’t want to create the impression that I wouldn’t like the government of the United States to be Islamic sometime in the future.”

But these are just words, so lets look at their deeds.

For starters founders Omar Ahmad and Nihad Awad were officers of the Islamic Association of Palestine, a group described by the Treasury Department as “intimately tied to the most senior Hamas leadership.” CAIR has tried to justify this by saying Hamas wasn’t designated a terrorist organization until later. . . when it started suicide bombings. But the FBI has said CAIR “went to great length and spent much effort hiding their association with [Hamas].”

Also, in 2009 (15 years after Hamas started using suicide bombers), CAIR sued the author of a book which portrayed CAIR “as a subversive organization allied with international terrorists” including Hamas. CAIR sued the author, alleging that the author had harmed them by publishing “unlawfully obtained. . . confidential” CAIR documents. BUT, as Politico noted, “despite the book’s harsh claims that CAIR is part of a ‘jihadist network,’ the suit does not allege libel or defamation.” In modern public relations parlance, that’s as good as an admission by CAIR because the only reason not to include such a claim is fear of what might be discovered during the litigation -- truth is a defense, and defendants have the right to investigate all allegations against them.

Further, a number of CAIR’s employees and founders are criminals with terrorist ties:
● Former CAIR Communications Director Randall Ismail Royer was sentenced to 20 years in prison for training to kill US soldiers. He pled guilty to carying explosives during the commission of a felony and of helping four people gain entry to a terrorist training camp in Pakistan.

● Former CAIR Communications Director Bassem Khafagi pled guilty to bank fraud after being charged with funneling money to terrorists.

● Texas CAIR Chapter founder Ghassan Elashi was convicted of shipping high tech goods to Hamas in Syria.

● CAIR fundraiser Rabih Haddad was deported to Lebanon because of terrorist ties.
CAIR also has defended Osama bin Laden and his conspirators:
● In 1998, CAIR objected to a billboard declaring Osama bin Laden “the sworn enemy” and demanded that it be taken down as being “offensive to Muslims.” They also publicly denied Osama bin Laden’s responsibility for the bombing of American embassies in Kenya and Nairobi.

● They called the conviction of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers “a travesty of justice” and called the conviction of mastermind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman (“the blind Sheikh”) “a hate crime.”

● They called the extradition of suspected Hamas terrorist Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook “anti-Islamic.”

● Florida CAIR Communications Director Ahmed Bedier said: "Catholic priests pose more of a terrorism threat by having sex with young altar boys than those who flew planes into the World Trade Center."
They have also praised and defended various convicted Muslim murders including Black Panther “Minister of Justice” H. Rap Brown, who murdered a police officer in March 2000. Indeed, there is a pattern of CAIR and similar groups coming to the defense (financially and rhetorically) of Muslims accused of violent crimes in the US.

In the Tennessee situation, CAIR misled the public about the meaning of the bill. The law mirrors federal law, which makes it a crime to finance or support acts of terror. It would have no application to the peaceful practice of Islam. Yet, CAIR claims the law makes it a crime punishable by 15 years to practice Islam. Indeed, they told the AP, they "fear the measure would outlaw central tenets of Islam, such as praying five times a day toward Mecca, abstaining from alcohol or fasting for Ramadan” and “this is an anti-Muslim bill that makes it illegal to be a Muslim in the state of Tennessee." Bull. Then CAIR began a smear campaign against Tennessee Tea Party officials, who support the law, and tried to get them banned from public appearances.

CAIR has similarly admitted trying to stop Rep. King's hearing, though they claim the effort is "widespread". . . as if that excuses it. And they tried to block Middle East expert Dr. Walid Phares from testifying at Rep. King's hearings on the basis that as a Christian, he cannot be allowed to testify about the radicalization of Islam as he cannot be impartial. They tried smearing him too, as they do with all who oppose them.

The Anti-Defamation League has accused CAIR of having a long record of propagating antiSemitic propaganda and "offering a platform to conspiratorial Israel-bashers." CAIR’s LA office head, for example, refers to Israelis as “zioNazis.” And while CAIR has at times condemned political violence, the ADL notes that their condemnations have been vague and generic. CAIR founders have also said they would never condemn any "freedom fighters" trying to free the Palestinians.

Even other Muslim groups have criticized CAIR for being “overly conservative,” by for example, taking the stance that all Muslim women are require to veil their hair.

Yet, our MSM has cited CAIR more than 11,000 times in the past 5 years!

So the next time you see a CAIR spokesman on television keep in mind who these people are. This is pretty clear evidence connecting CAIR to radical Islam and terrorism. And it’s not just right-wingers who’ve noticed. Sen. Dick Durbin said, CAIR is “unusual in its extreme rhetoric and its associations with groups that are suspect.” Sen. Chuck Schumer said CAIR has “ties to terrorism” and “intimate links to Hamas.” Of course, that was before the Democrats decided it was politically correct to ignore terrorism.


30 comments:

T_Rav said...

I seem to remember hearing some unusual stuff about Dr. Walid Phares at some point in the past. Can't remember what it was, but being CAIR, I'm sure it was in no way supportive of terrorism or sharia or anything like that.

Incidentally, since you brought up Peter King, there was a rather hilarious incident at MSNBC the other day. One of the prime-time hosts, Cenk Uygur (no, I don't know either), was blasting King for his anti-Muslim stance and started claiming that all the hate in this country comes from the right-wingers. To support his claim, he showed a list of the most powerful hate groups in America, provided by the SPLC. Except he clearly hadn't read the list beforehand, and it turns out #3 on the list is the Black Separatists. There was about two seconds of dead air, after which he sputtered, "Well, that doesn't make sense at all," and moved on. And I thought MSNBC had an agenda.

BevfromNYC said...

Andrew - Paul Sperry, who I believe is the "author of a book which portrayed CAIR" for which you were referring published an very enlightening Op/Ed piece this morning.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/brotherhood_usa_E1qqIUDUt84MZflEelGNoM

Tennessee Jed said...

CAIR reminds me of so many groups that are "advocates" for something. They always take a predictable position regardless of how silly it may be. By doing so, they lose any credibility they might otherwise be entitled to.I can appreciate the U.S. government wanting to sometimes choose it's words and policies carefully to avoid fanning anti-islamic furor.

I also understand our advantage in trying to protect those Muslim Americans who might otherwise speak out since they are often the biggest targets of the jihadists. However, this administration, and certain liberals in general have developed such a hate for conservatives, the military and America, that they fall prey to the "enemy of my enemy is my friend syndrome." CAIR is bad news, and we need to recognize and admit it..

AndrewPrice said...

T_Rav, That's hilarious! I'm sure he never expected the SPLC to list anything other than "right-wingers" or white racists, as that seems to be the only kind of racism they recognize. So he probably was pretty stunned. I guess they're going to have to hold a pow-wow now and sort out the old SPLC.... make sure they understand that only certain types of hate are really hate!

What are you doing watching MSNBC by the way? Are you feeling ok?

AndrewPrice said...

Bev, It is Paul Sperry. That's well timed! I'll check out the op ed piece! Thanks.

Here's the link: LINK

Unknown said...

Andrew: I first became aware of CAIR's true nature when they were named in 2002 as unindicted co-conspirators in The Holy Land Foundation (originally The Occupied Lands Fund) which used the cover of legitimate medical aid to disguise their funding of terrorist organizations in Palestine. I noticed the connection when the MSM footnoted the connection at the time The Holy Land Foundation started soliciting funds for 9/11 victims when they were actually funneling the money to Hamas. No wonder CAIR is so anxious to build the Ground Zero mosque.

AndrewPrice said...

Jed, I think that's entirely correct. Contrary to what some people think, the vast majority of Muslims are good people who don't want these extremists anymore than we do. (FYI, CAIR's membership is only 1,700, down from 27,000 at the time of 9/11.)

So we should chart a careful policy of separating the good from the bad, protecting the good, and seeking to remove the bad. But the Democrats have gone so insane in their hatred of all things middle-American, from patriotism to Christianity to capitalism to domestic brands to conservatism, that they will happily side with any enemy of the US in the name of eliminating these things.

CAIR is the classic example of a group that is not good for anyone. Even putting aside their connection to terrorism, they are still an extremist, race-separatist group with a desire to oppress everyone else -- just like the Black Panthers or La Raza or a dozen more. They hide under the cloak of legitimate civil rights activities and then push a hateful agenda. If the Democrats were rational and truly believed in civil rights, they would shun these groups, just like they shun the KKK. Instead, they embrace these groups because they see them as allies against an America that will not adopt their policies.

AndrewPrice said...

Lawhawk, That's the first time I heard of them as well. Since that time I've been shocked to see their activities -- like 11,000 MSM interviews and massive amounts of lobbying of both parties.

There have finally been memos sent around to all of Congress warning them about associating with CAIR, but before that, many members of Congress saw them just like the NAACP.

AndrewPrice said...

Bev,

The title of Sperry's book was "Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That's Conspiring to Islamize America."

The editorial is a good one and everything he says is verifiably correct. There are websites that contain court documents, press releases from CAIR and the FBI, and congressional documents which prove all of this.

Another disturbing piece he mentions in the editorial is how well groups like CAIR and others have infiltrated the US political structure. For example, he mentions:

* Abdurahman Alamoudi, an al Qaeda financier who served as a top Muslim adviser to Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush -- and as an official State Department goodwill ambassador to the Muslim world.

Wonderful.

T_Rav said...

Hey now! I'm not watching MSNBC, Andrew, I found the link to a clip of the show at another website--a conservative website, mind you, which was making fun of the host. Don't put words in my mouth, you...lawyer with your...lawyerly ways.

Although maybe I should start watching MSNBC. For one, there's the entertainment value; for another, they need all the viewers they can get.

AndrewPrice said...

Sort of Related Update:

It looks like James O'Keefe has done it again. This time he got former NPR executive Ron Schiller on camera talking about why they hate the Tea Party (and the Republican Party).

He says the Republican Party has been "hijacked" by the Tea Party, which is a group that's "not just Islamophobic, but really xenophobic" and is comprised of some "seriously racist, racist people."

He then does NOT object when the two guys playing members of a pro-Islamic group make outlandish comments about Jews controlling the media and he laughs when they jokingly refer to NPR as "National Palestinian Radio."

LINK

AndrewPrice said...

T_Rav, I'm glad to hear you weren't watching, you had me concerned!

They certainly do need viewers, but then "Mensa for Dummies" needs members too. I'd just let both groups die off a natural death.

LimeyLibertarian said...

I can highly recommend Robert Spencer's book 'The complete infidels guide to the Koran'. An enlightening read with a section specifically about CAIR.

Joel Farnham said...

Andrew,

To me, CAIR is one of the more loathsome advocacy groups associated with Islam. I go to Atlas Shrugs fairly regularly. Pamela Geller has chronicled most of what you speak.

She features the Islamic honor killings which CAIR, while maybe not directly responsible for them, has never denounced or spoken out against them.

Honor killings are when an Islamic relative, in order to cleanse family honor, kills another. It usually is over becoming too Americanized. Sometimes it is simply not wearing the Burka.

CAIR, if it was an honest civil rights group, would be worried about the rights of Islamic women. And seeking relief for same. Instead it defends horrific organizations like Hamas and goes after supposed slights.

Still, they aren't the worst. The worst are the people who knowingly enable CAIR. I can understand some naivety when first dealing with Islam. After learning what is regularly practiced in a country dominated by Islam, people should repudiate it and refuse to deal with it. The ones who help CAIR should be sent to one of the Islamic countries with tatoos all over their bodies which says, "Allah is ****ed by goats.", or "I eat pig." Whichever one translates the easiest into Arabic.

AndrewPrice said...

Thanks LimeyLibertarian. I'm finding this whole thing incredibly enlightening -- if that's the right word... depressing is probably the better word.

I assume this must be much worse in Britain given what I've seen about open advocacy of Jihad?

While you could legal do that here, the public relations would be such a nightmare that you don't see it here. Instead, they're trying a stealth plan of trying to sound like they are normal, rational "civil rights" groups, and then preaching the hate when the cameras get turned off.

AndrewPrice said...

Joel, I like your plan! It would certainly highlight Islamic tolerance (or the lack thereof).

In terms of honor killings, CAIR actually gave an award to a man who cut off his wife's head. How's that for civil rights!

I think it's stunning that the left thinks these are good allies to have -- or that apologists on the right are afraid to engage these people.

(1) If there are good Muslims (and there are), then they will not be bothered by our engaging the bad one, and (2) if there aren't, then it doesn't matter if we upset them. Either way, we should not be afraid to deal with these people.

CrispyRice said...

Great article, and very necessary, Andrew! Michael Savage has been railing against CAIR for a long, long time. They are so duplicitous in what they are vs how they portray themselves. It's very important that people know about them.

But I think part of the trouble is that average Americans don't really know anything about them nor care to. CAIR works by using courts and our own PC-laws to scare people into submission. If a Christian group were doing this, there would massive outrage.

Thanks for the book recommendation, too, limeylibertarian. I'll check it out.

AndrewPrice said...

Crispy, That's true. And there are some interesting quotes from CAIR people about the media doing their job for them because they're so terrified of being accused of bias and that they won't actually dig into stories. So they've gotten along quite nicely with saying one thing in public and another just off camera.

T_Rav said...

Andrew, I hear Schiller also said NPR "doesn't need federal funds."

DEAL!!

AndrewPrice said...

T_Rav, That was the one thing he said that I could agree with! Of course, his reasoning was ridiculous -- that it would free them from having to be fair... as if they even think about being fair.

But hey, I agree, let's cut them loose and stop over-nurturing them!

BevfromNYC said...

NY Daily News poll from today's paper:
A very liberal slanted paper, btw

Do you believe the Muslim community is doing its part to combat terrorism?

77% - No, they need to speak out more against the violence

16% - Yes, the are doing what they can.

7% - I don't know.

I am not sure you would have seen those results earlier in the year.

CrispyRice said...

Very true, Bev!

AndrewPrice said...

Bev, Wow! the times they are a changin'! Maybe there is hope for us yet?

Actually, I saw an article yesterday by a shocked liberal reporter that websites are starting to document the evils of Islam in the US and Europe. I think people have decided that if the government is going to turn a blind eye to the bad guys in our midsts, then they will take it upon themselves to point out the truth.

I was amazed at the amount of information people are gathering on groups like CAIR and others. The internet really is making it very hard for groups like this to hide.

BevfromNYC said...

Andrew - I'm shocked at the number of Op/Ed articles I read opining about how badly Obama & Co. are handling Libya and the Mideast drama in general. Britain and France are heading up any UN resolutions to sanction Libya and to request a no-fly zone while Obama dithers about.

I think that this is the first time in my life that we have not taken the lead or worked in concert with Britain and France. It is very sad.

BevfromNYC said...

Let me clarify - I am not shocked that they find Obama dithering. He is. I am just shocked the MSM Op/Ed departments are being so vocal and critical.

StanH said...

CAIR is emblematic of an organization we’ve allowed far to much credence like NOW. Anytime there is a Muslim-goon question they go to CAIR, same with NOW, and in reality they both represent a very small percentage of the US population, turn the damn cameras off of them and they will evaporate. I’m all for free speech, but as we fix the mistake of ’08 (Barry), we need to call a spade a spade, and in no uncertain terms paint CAIR for the aspiring fascist that they really are. Screw this Islamic street, they want to riot and kill each other let’em!

AndrewPrice said...

Bev, I know what you mean. I actually mention this in tomorrow morning's article because even a couple prominent Democrats have called him out for a failure of leadership.

It's getting interesting. I wonder if they aren't worried that the longer they hitch their wagon to this guy, the bigger the damage will be as he keeps stumbling blindly through his duties?

Or they're hoping to send a signal now, before the election cycle begins that he better change his ways?

AndrewPrice said...

Stan, I would love to see something done about these groups. The best thing we could do would be (1) set up conservative counter-groups and (2) stop supporting these groups with PR and by giving them a forum to speak, and (3) use the power of law to fight them at every turn.

DUQ said...

I'm glad people are catching onto this story and others like it. These people need to be exposed before we end up with a strong terrorist underground in this country.

AndrewPrice said...

DUQ, I agree and it sounds like lots of people are catching on. So hopefully that will change things.

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