Posted on 12/22/2006 7:59:01 PM PST by Graybeard58
Meanwhile, Holocaust Memorial Museum distances itself from board member's criticism of representative-elect's plan to use Quran for oath of office
WASHINGTON — Rep.-elect Keith Ellison said Thursday he would tell a Virginia congressman who expressed concern about "many more Muslims" being elected that there is nothing to fear about Muslims.
"They are our nurses, doctors, husbands, wives, kids who just want to live and prosper in the American way," Ellison, D-Minn., said on CNN. "And that there's really nothing to fear. And that all of us are steadfastly opposed to the same people he's opposed to, which is terrorists, and so there's nothing for him to be afraid of."
Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, was responding to a letter that Rep. Virgil Goode, R-Va., sent this month to hundreds of constituents who had written to him about Ellison's plan to use the Quran at his ceremonial swearing-in. In that letter, Goode wrote that unless immigration is tightened, "many more Muslims" will be elected and follow Ellison's lead.
Asked in the CNN interview whether he thought Goode was a bigot, Ellison said, "I don't know the fellow, and I'd rather just say that he has a lot to learn about Islam. … I don't want to start any name-calling."
Ellison stressed that the Constitution has no religious test for members to serve in Congress.
Meanwhile, Goode held a news conference in Rocky Mount, Va., on Thursday saying he would not rescind the letter — despite complaints from an Islamic civil rights group and a New Jersey congressman. He added that he has received more positive than negative comments from constituents.
In a related development Thursday, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum board's executive committee distanced itself from statements made by board member Dennis Prager, who had criticized Ellison's decision to use the Quran during his ceremonial swearing-in.
In an Internet column last month, Prager, a conservative talk radio host, wrote that when it comes to members of Congress taking an oath, "America is interested in only one book, the Bible. If you are incapable of taking an oath on that book, don't serve in Congress."
The museum resolution, approved Wednesday but announced Thursday, reads that it "disassociates itself from Mr. Prager's statements as being antithetical to the mission of the museum as an institution promoting tolerance and respect for all peoples regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity."
The executive committee oversees the operation of the museum between full board meetings.
By tradition, all members of the House are sworn in together on the House floor. It's in the photo-op ceremony that a Bible is used — or in Ellison's case, the Quran.
The resolution by the board's executive committee comes after an Islamic civil rights group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, called for Prager's removal from the board because of his comments. The board has stated it has no power to rescind appointments, which are made by the president. President Bush appointed Prager in August to fill the remainder of a five-year term, which expires in January 2011.
In a statement, Prager said he was honored to "continue serving" on the board and that he understands the pressures that caused the museum to issue a statement.
"I was appointed to the (board) because of a lifetime devoted to combating anti-Semitism and every other form of discrimination," said Prager, who is Jewish.
"My entire effort in the Keith Ellison matter has been to draw attention to the need to acknowledge the Bible as the basis of America's moral values," he added. "Judeo-Christian values are the greatest single protection against another Holocaust."
In a telephone interview, CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said he found it interesting that Prager remains on a board that called his views antithetical to its mission.
"We would repeat our request to President Bush to rescind Prager's appointment to the board and ask other board members to do whatever they can to convince Mr. Prager to do the right thing and withdraw voluntarily," he said.
This guy is dangerous..
Ellison is wrong.
Not wrong so much as he is lying.
What about Amish?
Just one word... Taqiya. (Taqiya, or not showing their faith openly by means of pretense, dissimulation, or concealment, is a special type of LYING which is used by Shi'a Muslims.) Ellison's first alliance is with Islam not America.
Amen.
an American Quisling.
Chamberlain
Actually, Islam has a lot to explain.
Prove that lying is a "sin" under all circumstances, not just to infidels. Until then, there can be no acceptance of what a muslim says.
They are a sneaky bunch.
"In a telephone interview, CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said he found it interesting that Prager remains on a board that called his views antithetical to its mission."
I find it interesting that CAIR, with its ties to Hamas, etc., is allowed to operate in this country. I would say CAIR's views are antithetical to America's "mission."
Everything I learned about Islam came on 9-11.
Ellison is crooked. He gets my vote for the first member of the freshman class of 2007 to get indicted.
It is what Ellison represents that is dangerous.
Who knew the 19 HiJackers on 911 were really Amish? Apparently KE the elected slave of satanallah thinks so.
perhaps not what he represents (although his acceptance speech with the people chanting "allah akbar" on stage may cause me to re-evaluate that) - but who he enables. by not acknowleding radical islam, by telling everyone "oh, they are all just like everyone else", he enables the portion of that community that is radical, to exist and escape oversight.
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