Posted on 04/11/2004 5:05:15 PM PDT by Sub-Driver
Muslim Americans say they will flex political muscle in 2004 Sunday April 11, 2004 By JENNIFER FRIEDLIN Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) Nizar Yaghi hasn't decided for whom he'll vote on Election Day, but one thing is certain the Muslim American will cast his ballot this November.
``After Sept. 11, I understood that Muslim Americans need to come out and present themselves to the Americans,'' said Yaghi, a 28-year-old engineer from Schenectady, N.Y. ``One way to do this is through the political process.''
With the 2004 presidential election approaching, people like Yaghi are stepping up efforts to encourage their fellow Muslims to register to vote and to convince the presidential candidates that they need to be accountable to the Muslim American community, which numbers up to 7 million, according to estimates.
Although Muslim groups say there are only about 4.2 million eligible Muslim voters out of 200 million eligible voters overall, they believe these voters could have considerable influence on the November election.
``We believe this election will be a very tight one and small communities can play a major role, particularly in battleground states such as Michigan, Ohio and Florida, where a majority of Muslims live,'' Omar Ahmad, national chairman of the Council on American Islamic Relations, said at a news conference on Saturday.
Ahmad's group is one of several that belong to the American Muslim Taskforce on Civil Rights and Elections, an umbrella organization that aims to register 1 million Muslims to vote and to educate Muslims about the presidential candidates' positions.
Agha Saeed, the chairman of the task force, said his group hasn't decided which presidential candidate it will endorse, but he said it would weigh the candidates' positions on civil rights issues, the economy, crime prevention and education.
``We are going to hold town hall meetings all over the United States for the community and for the candidates to engage in a dialogue where we bring ourselves up to speed on these issues and create common cause with fellow Americans,'' Saeed said.
Muslim leaders made their first unified endorsement in a presidential race in 2000, backing George W. Bush. Many thought he would take a harder line against Israel and, based on statements he made while campaigning, would protect the rights of immigrants facing deportation.
Many Muslims said they have been disappointed on both counts. They also have objected to the USA Patriot Act, which gave the government broad powers to monitor citizens after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
A spokesman for the Bush re-election campaign, Scott Stanzel, said the president would work to maintain the support of the Muslim community by appealing to its beliefs in ``strong family, opportunity and the ability to achieve the American dream.''
A spokesman for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry could not be reached by telephone for comment.
Stay away from the train stations!
Not too bright, are you? The Koran and the Constitution are mutually exclusive.
Muslims and the Constitution are mutually exclusive.
A-hats deriving their nicks from renowned libertines and pedophiles tend to display little understanding of the founding fathers. Go figure.
Anyone who would allow islamic activity after 9.11 wouldn't know a principle if it bit him on the lip.
And if the founding fathers were here today, the first thing they would do would be to work a prohibition of islam into the constitution. And they wouldn't be content with deporting the offenders either.
I think you presented yourselves just fine ON September 11th..
Obviously, there are things that you're just unable to cope with. Someone (I forget who, it was one of the mainstream conservative columnists I think) recently said "the Constitution is not a suicide pact". But that is exactly what it is, if people like you have their say - for "love" of freedom.
As I said, if the authors of the Constitution had a look at current events and the enemy encroaching on your precious freedom, the Constitution would be amended to reflect reality so fast your head would spin.
Its about whether we are a society of laws.
Exactly - but which laws? You keep up the good work, and you'll have sharia before you know it. Good luck.
You think? It really doesn't matter. Islam is at war with anything that is not Islam. It is a world war. You'll fight, or you'll die. And I suspect that when the President thinks you're up to facing the truth, he'll tell you.
You really are a fool. The Constitution does not protect an enemy in wartime. This is wartime. Islam is the enemy. Beyond that, it has always been the enemy and always will be.
But your rethoric is really, really similar to what's coming out of CAIR these days. Very instructive. Now go away.
LIES LIES LIES. There are no more than 1.25 million eligible Muslim voters. Yet another media outlet using the phony CAIR numbers, which have been thoroughly disredited by the Yale and U of Chicago studies.
Not here. But FYI, in Russia they were extremely quick to denounce the activities of the Wahabi sects. I remember reading in amazement on Lenta.ru as each large association of muslims came out with very condemning statements about our tragedy. I still haven't figured this one out.
Serbia tried but unfortunately Klintoon chose to bomb them for their efforts. But a study of the population of Kosovo would be very apt reading for this thread.
Greece, Russia, and Serbia, all Orthodox Christian countries.
Say no more, say no more, wink wink, nudge nudge..
Sigh. You really believe in that twattle, right?
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