Posted on 11/02/2002 10:08:11 PM PST by GOPcapitalist
YOUNGCONSERVATIVES OF TEXAS
NEWS ADVISORY
November 2, 2002
For Immediate Release
Contact: Chris Allen, Chairman
(940) 328-4175
YCT Demands Ron Kirk Donate Contribution from Convicted Felon & Terrorist Bagman to Charity for Victims of Terrorism
Austin, TX - Ihsan Elashyi, who donated $500 to Ron Kirk's campaign, was sentenced to prison on October 22 on charges stemming from an anti-terrorism investigation over sensitive illegal computer equipment exports to Libya and Syria.
The Houston Review reported that Elashyi's firm Infocom received a $250,000 investment from the wife of Mousa Abu Marzook, a Hamas leader based in Syria. Infocom is closely linked to the non-profit Holy Land Foundation (HLF), which was chartered by Elashyi's brother and fellow Infocom principle Ghassan Elashyi. Infocom had its assets frozen last December by the Treasury Department because of the group's ties to terrorist organizations. Curiously, Infocom has owned the domain name binladen.com since August 1997.
Chris Allen, Young Conservatives of Texas (YCT) State Chairman, stated, "Ron Kirk's campaign has cashed in on the profits made by a convicted felon who is aiding and abetting regimes and terrorist organizations that are hell-bent on destroying Israel and America. We implore Kirk to immediately donate this terror-tainted money to a charity benefiting the victims of September 11 and other terrorist attacks."
Allen continued, "Unfortunately, this contribution is just tip of the iceberg. For months, Kirk employed Steven Hyland, an anti-Israel activist and friend of American Taliban Johnny Walker Lindh. In the October 23 Senate debate, Kirk demanded that all Israelis be purged from the West Bank. The Council on American-Islamic Relations DFW chapter hosted a dinner honoring Kirk in 1995 and brags on their website that they have a 'special relationship' with him."
CAIR labeled the conviction of the perpetrators of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing "a travesty of justice." Similarly, it called the conviction of Omar Abdel Rahman, the blind sheikh who planned to blow up New York City landmarks, "hate crime." CAIR termed the extradition order for suspected Hamas terrorist Mousa Abu Marook "anti-Islamic" and "anti-American."
Daniel Pipes, a Middle East scholar, has reported that "The head of CAIR's Los Angeles office, Hussam Ayloush, routinely uses the term "zionazi" when referring to Israelis. CAIR co-hosted an event in May 1998 at which an Egyptian militant Islamic leader, Wagdi Ghunaym, called Jews the "descendants of the apes.""
Kirk has also received the endorsement and tens of thousands of dollars in financial support from the Council for a Livable World, a left-wing "peace" group which supports eliminating all U.S. nuclear weapons and making deep cuts in the defense budget.
Allen concluded, "Although Kirk's contribution from Elashyi is from his 1995 Mayoral campaign, Elashyi was convicted only a week ago so there is still time for Ron Kirk to do the right thing and redirect a small fraction of the millions of dollars he is spending on negative ads to help the victims of terrorism. There is also still time for Texans to make sure that we elect a Senator who will protect U.S. national security."
SOURCES:
U.S. Department of Justice Press Release on Elashy's Sentencing http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/txn/PressRel02/elashyi_sen_pr.html
Houston Review Article on Kirk Donor Sentenced on Charges Related to Anti-Terror Probe
(Includes Scanned Image of Kirk Campaign Finance Report Showing Elashy's Contribution)
http://www.houstonreview.com/election02/kirkdonor.htm
Austin Review Article on Hyland and Kirk's Questionable Contributions
http://www.austinreview.com/articles/2002_04b/kirk.htm
Houston Review: Kirk Lies About Radical Anti-Israel Activist's Role in Campaign
http://www.houstonreview.com/0902/kirk2.htm
The Young Conservatives of Texas, a non-partisan conservative youth organization, has been fighting for conservative values for more than two decades in the Lone Star State and publishes the most respected ratings of the Texas Legislature. YCT has chapters at Texas A&M University, West Texas A&M, Baylor University, the University of Texas, Texas Tech, Southern Methodist University, and in the Houston and Washington, DC areas.
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