Keith Ellison slams Bachmann’s “galling” witch hunt

[babylonsister]

Keith Ellison slams Bachmann’s “galling” witch hunt
Rep. Keith Ellison speaks with Salon about fighting Rep. Michele Bachmann's anti-Muslim campaign
By Alex Seitz-Wald


Rep. Keith Ellison, a Democrat from Minnesota, has been leading the charge against fellow Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s Muslim witch hunt. The first Muslim elected to Congress, Ellison has now had his own loyalty to the United States questioned. He speaks with Salon about his motivations for the fight, Bachmann’s $1 million fundraising haul and why he’s optimistic that Americans will fight Islamophobia.

Why did you decide to take on this issue?

I just thought it was galling, absolutely. That she would make unsupported allegations of disloyalty and subversion against a person who’s a decent civil servant and person. But it wasn’t always Huma Abedin. I mean, she’s kind of the poster child of this thing, but one of the other people mentioned by name is a guy named Mohamed Elibiary. He’s a fellow who worked hard on interfaith dialogue. He’s a Muslim religious leader, but he traveled to Poland with Hannah Rosenthal, who was the special envoy to combat and monitor anti-Semitism, and visited Auschwitz. He came back and made it his personal mission to speak to Muslim congregations against anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. And so this is the kind of caliber of person he is. And then Michele is going to just trash him? I just think that it’s wrong. And I said, you know, I’m just not going out like that. I actually didn’t want to stick my nose out, but then I felt like, if I don’t say something about it, who is going to?

Was that because not only are you right next to her — your districts touch each other — but you’re also the first Muslim elected to Congress, so you’re sort of the only man for the job?

Well you know, here’s the thing about me being the first Muslim elected to Congress. That really wasn’t why I did this. I mean, I pray that if she had said, let’s do this thing on the Jewish community or the Buddhists or whatever, I hope I would do the same thing and say, “you prove that.” You prove that these people are part of some extremist group. It happens to be that I’m in the same group as the people affected, but I hope that that’s not what made me want to step up. I mean, look, if people in an affected group are the only ones who will ever say anything, our world is going to be sadder and poorer for it. You know, I’ve had to sit back and watch crazy allegations go by. So maybe I’m slightly more sensitized because of who I am, but it really wasn’t why I jumped out there.

By now, we’ve had John McCain, John Boehner, Mike Rogers and others in the GOP publicly condemn her. Would you like to see them do more?

Well, it would depend on what that “more” was. I want to be grateful for what they have done. I think that it’s not easy to criticize your own, which made McCain such a brave guy when he did that. Because he knew they were going to attack him for that. And they have. You know, some fool is trying to recall him.

more...

http://www.salon.com/2012/08/04/keith_ellison_slams_bachmanns_galling_witch_hunt/

[longship]

1. One of the good guys.

R& for Rep. Ellison.

[doohnibor]

2. "you prove that"

Republican anti-science at work. Science proceeds by carefully collecting facts and assembling them together and seeing what conclusions can be drawn. Republican anti-science starts with conclusions that are "common sense", like the well known epidemic of voter fraud, that Muslims are terrorists, that tax cuts cause economic growth, and they carefully collect facts in support of the conclusions.

[twizzler]

3. That woman makes my skin crawl

every time she opens her mouth. What are the chances of her being defeated this time around? Are we running a good candidate against her?
She really needs to be relegated to the trash heap of history.

[freshwest]

4. Last thread I read on her said her district is drawn so she'll be re-elected, and they love her.

Someone with a closer grasp on Minnesotan politics may see the chance, but that one person on the thread said that, and appeared to know the area. Others said they wanted her to stay to remain as a laughing stock, that another bagger would be elected in her place if she was pushed out, but a Democrat would not get the seat. I think the only reason the GOP went after her was that she finally jumped the shark and said that their godfather Grover Nordquist was part of the plot to bring down the USA. That I believe and I did enjoy that part of her ranting. She appears to be aiming in all directions.

[twizzler]

5. I thought she was in Minnesota?

OK yeah she is in MN. Why can't she be investigated by the House Ethics Committee and censured? Sounds like even the repubs have had enough of her racist hijinks.

[freshwest]

6. Oh, yeah, you're right. I'll edit. She's in Ann Arbor this week, though, on her hate tour.

[bvar22]

7. Keith Ellison is one of the good guys.

Michele Bachmann's district is next door to Ellison's district, which is central Minneapolis.
Bachmann's district is the white flight suburbs immediately to the north of Minneapolis/St Paul.

Traveling north from the Twin Cities and crossing over that line is like entering a Time/Space Warp.
I've seem more rebel flags and "I love Rush" or "Jason Lewis RULES bumper stickers
there than I have in many parts of the South.
It is bizarre.

[ProSense]

8. I feel for Congressman Ellison

having to debate a moron. This is where the Republican Party has taken this country.

"By now, we’ve had John McCain, John Boehner, Mike Rogers and others in the GOP publicly condemn her. Would you like to see them do more? "

Guess who hasn't condemned Bachmann: http://thinkprogress.org/security/2012/08/03/637861/romney-refuses-to-condemn-bachmanns-islamophobic-witch-hunt/

[Odin2005]

9. I wish I lived in his district rather than that of Collin DINO Peterson.

IMO Ellison is the best progressive to come out of my state since Wellstone.