Today at the Hudson Institute conference on the Muslim Brotherhood, we heard a speech by Naser Khader, a Danish parliamentarian and Muslim who risks his life speaking out against radical Islam. He mentioned in passing that the US ambassador to Denmark is a "useful idiot" who recently invited radical Muslim Brotherhood members to a special event at his residence for the purpose of "dialogue." One of the invitees, Khader said, is a Holocaust denier. Another is a notorious Danish imam who went to the Arab world telling lies about Denmark to stoke up emotions during the Danish cartoon controversy. Khader said US diplomats are fools to do things like this.
Earlier, I'd spoken in the hallway to an American Muslim resolutely opposed to the Muslim Brotherhood, and who frequently interacts with the US government across a range of issues having to do with Muslims. The source said that American officials had recently told US Muslim leaders that they could do whatever they wanted in terms of organizing their own communities without any pressure from Washington, so long as they could guarantee that there wouldn't be any violence coming from them.
"Are you serious?" I said. "Didn't they learn anything from that policy's failure in Britain and the Netherlands?"
My source said that the Bush administration is simply focused on getting through the next 15 months without any terrorist incidents, and is happy to let the next president deal with it.
I can't confirm this, of course, so consider it a rumor. But I can tell you that this source is plugged in to official Washington pretty tightly. Make of that what you will.
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"The source said that American officials had recently told US Muslim leaders that they could do whatever they wanted in terms of organizing their own communities without any pressure from Washington, so long as they could guarantee that there wouldn't be any violence coming from them."
One problem with your statement:
Given the strictures of the First Amendment, how could American officials NOT allow Muslims to "organiz(e) their own communities without any pressure from Washington"?
I'm not criticizing you -- yes, I'm aware of the problems with violence-advocating clerics in the U.K. and Holland, and of course in the U.S. as well -- but how do you crack down and still maintain EVERYONE ELSE'S religious freedom?
(Not to mention religious freedom for Muslims who WANT to be peaceful Americans.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRgREeYf3fI
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