The office of Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the first elected Muslim congressman, is promoting an event in Congress on September 13 to publicize the Center for American Progress’ report, “Fear Inc: The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America.” The event comes almost exactly one week after Rep. Allen West hosted a screening of a film opposed to the Ground Zero Mosque, which was accompanied by a panel on the Islamist threat within the U.S.
On September 7, Rep. Allen West held a screening of the Christian Action Network’s film titled “Sacrificed Survivors: The Untold Story of the Ground Zero Mosque.” He stood by the sides of 9/11 survivors and victims’ family members who emotionally spoke out against the project. His press conference is now viewable online. Afterwards, there was a panel that included myself, Patrick Poole, Clare Lopez, Michael Del Rosso and John Guandolo. The event was streamed live by the United West and had approximately 2,000 viewers. Now, Rep. Keith Ellison is promoting an event in the Rayburn House Office Building on September 13 about “Islamophobia.”
“I find it hard to believe that the timing of [this] event is a coincidence,” FrontPage was told by Martin Mawyer, President of the Christian Action Network.
The report endorsed by Ellison, “Fear Inc.,” sharply criticizes Rep. Allen West and specifically mentions the September 7 event. It calls West a “loyal foot soldier in the misguided campaign against Sharia.” It also criticizes Clare Lopez and Tom Trento, two other speakers at the event. Ellison’s goal is to question the integrity of those talking about the ideological roots of radical Islam.
“The report identifies the funding streams that support anti-Muslim activities, the intellectual nexus of the Islamophobia network, the grassroots players and organizations that help spread messages of hate, the media amplifiers of Islamophobia, and the elected officials who support anti-Muslim causes,” said an e-mailed statement from Rep. Ellison.
Rep. Ellison has repeatedly worked with Muslim Brotherhood fronts like the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Islamic Society of North America, both of which were labeled as “unindicted co-conspirators” in the Holy Land Foundation trial. A judge ruled in 2009 that the federal government had “ample evidence” to connect them to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. His 2008 pilgrimage to Mecca was sponsored by the Muslim American Society, another Brotherhood affiliate. He has also received donations from major players in the Brotherhood’s American networks. He defends CAIR, and lashes out against those who talk about the ideological roots of the Islamist threat, including moderate Muslims like Zuhdi Jasser.
The “Fear Inc.” report has been extensively rebutted here at FrontPage Magazine. It was published by the Center for American Progress, a left-wing think-tank led by John Podesta, the former chief-of-staff for President Clinton, with an annual budget of at least $25 million, and possibly as high as $38 million. It took part in the creation of Media Matters for America, a non-profit that seeks to counter perceived right-wing bias in the media. It relentlessly criticizes so-called Islamophobes, including myself (read my rebuttal here).
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