Islamist 'enabler' threatens 'grave harm to Bush presidency,' Gaffney warns

Center for Security Policy ^ | 26 February 2003 | Frank Gaffney

[Fred Mertz]

Headline Story |

Islamist 'enabler' threatens 'grave harm to Bush presidency,' Gaffney warns

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Norquist's group took seed money from an avowed supporter of Hezbollah, the terrorist group that killed 241 US Marines in a 1983 Beirut bombing.

A prominent conservative leader who allegedly has used undeclared foreign money and top political connections to promote terrorist sympathizers is an 'enabler' who threatens 'to do grave harm to the Bush presidency.'

Center for Security Policy President Frank Gaffney issued the warning in a letter to Grover Norquist, founding chairman of the Islamic Institute, after Norquist publicly accused Gaffney of 'racism and bigotry' and banished him from a weekly strategy group. Norquist's actions came in response to Gaffney's criticism of a White House official who allowed pro-terrorist Muslim groups access to the White House complex on January 16.

'People who afford terrorist-supporters or -apologists and their organizations entree into the White House deserve to be both challenged and criticized,' Gaffney wrote in response. Norquist, an anti-tax activist and Washington networker who often purports to speak in the name of President Bush, told Gaffney in a widely distributed letter that the Center for Security Policy leader was guilty of 'racial prejudice, religous bigotry or ethnic hatred' because the criticized official is a Muslim.

In response, Gaffney and American Conservative Union leader David Keene slammed Norquist for 'employing "Stalinist tactics" against those who disagree with Mr. Norquist's role in brokering access to the Bush White House,' the Washington Times reported on February 7.

Norquist has been criticized for promoting what is called the Wahhabi lobby, a Saudi-funded network designed to dominate and radicalize Islam in America, at the expense of other Muslim groups whose stand against terrorism is unequivocal.

'Why have you gone to such lengths to defend - to say nothing of legitimize and advance the agendas of - terrorist sympathizers and others hostile to everything for which American conservatives stand?' Gaffney asked Norquist in a responding letter. Gaffney listed his concerns:

* The Islamic Institute, which Norquist co-founded and houses in his Americans for Tax Reform office, received seed money from an avowed supporter of Hezbollah, the terrorist group that killed 241 US Marines in a 1983 suicide bomb attack.

* The Islamic Institute reportedly is 'predominantly funded by foreign governments, shady Saudi sources, and US-based groups raided by the Treasury Department-led Operation Green Quest Task Force for allegedly funding suicide bombers, al Qaeda and other terrorists' activities.'

* Norquist led conservative opposition to parts of the Bush administration's anti-terrorism legislation, without disclosing that his Islamic group was dependent on such funds.

* Norquist has affiliated himself with the radical National Committee to Protect Political Freedom (NCPPF), from which he received an award shortly before the September 11, 2001 attacks, despite the group's thirty-year public track record of promoting domestic and international terrorism.

* Norquist reportedly introduced Sami Al-Arian, whom federal law enforcement officials say is a leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, to then-candidate George W. Bush during the 2000 campaign. Televised videotape shows Al-Arian raising money in the US for terrorists.

[Chad Fairbanks]

Do you have any PROOF about this, other than the unsubstantiated allegations? If so, speak up...

[Kryptonite]

Thank you. :)

[Jael]

True conservatives never take money from terrorist.

True conservatives never support those who do.

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

Why in the world would you urge those kinds of actions?

I believe he was being hyperbolic and perhaps a bit sarcastic in order to make a point. (IOW, he was kidding.)

[Chad Fairbanks]

My goodness! Why in the world would you urge those kinds of actions?

I was just doing my best to be like you and Todd, and Fred, and all rest of you people who are so bitter because your canidates for president didn't get the nomintion... ya know, the "Bush isn't a real conservative" crowd???

Bottom line? That's what this is all about....

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

So who are you saying is not a "real conservative"? Name names.

[Jael]

It is certainly an error. It is certainly a betrayal of the lives of the innocent people who died on 9/11.

I would die before I sucked up to a man who supports terrorism.

[Chad Fairbanks]

I would die before I sucked up to a man who supports terrorism.

Who supports terrorism? Bush????? Going a little out on a limb there, ain't ya???

[Sir Gawain]

Maxine Waters.

[Cultural Jihad]

By rats like Hillary and Grover and their friends.

Naw. Everyone expects Hillary to sell out the country. And Grover is too small potatos to make anyone as sad as you had alleged you were. You must have been referring to someone else, someone whom the vast majority of Americans trust and admire.

[Southflanknorthpawsis]

[Texasforever]

Who supports terrorism? Bush?????

Of course he does. He has all of his terrorist buddies arrested. It is a fiendish plot to bring in the New World Order.

[PRND21]

There's you two again.

[justshe]

Pull up a chair....it's a good show.

[Mo1]

makes sense to me, thanks for clearing that up :^)

[Chad Fairbanks]

We had so much fun with you, we decided to take the show on the road...

[TLBSHOW]

Its about Norquist not President Bush

The charges are laid out against Norquist by Frank.

Have you seen Grover say this is false what Frank has said?

Please link me if he did. I have looked.

[Texasforever]

Pull up a chair....it's a good show.

Not after 15 re-runs.

[Cultural Jihad]

Of course it's relevent... Todd is doing his very best to undermine the administration... that is my firm belief, based on everything I've seen him post...

Really, IMHO ALL of the extreme anti-Muslims who post endless rants about how evil the Muslim religion is are dissembling and at cross-purposes to not only FreeRepublic, but American national security aims. President Bush has stated often that we are not at war with Islam, but that doesn't stop the opportunists from gathering here to smear his administration and policies.

[Chad Fairbanks]

ROTFL