State Department Blows $500,000 to Import Muslims

NewsMax.com ^ | 5/28/02 | Carl Limbacher and NewsMax.com Staff

[kattracks]

You might think there's no shortage of Muslims in America, but the State Department is squandering $500,000 in taxpayer money to import foreign Islamic "clerics." Experts on the Middle East worry that terrorists will exploit the program.

The scheme will also send American clerics to Muslim areas abroad. The whiz kids in the mind-numbing bowels of Foggy Bottom will award grants to groups establishing programs that supposedly "enhance understanding about the place of Islam in American society."

"The new program comes at a time when anti-U.S. sentiment appears high in Muslim countries and officials fear future terrorist attacks from Muslim extremists," the Washington Post noted today.

Daniel Pipes, director of Middle East Forum, pointed to Muslim extremist groups that have used educational organizations and "charities" as fronts for money laundering and other crimes.

"There is a real danger that this will fall in the wrong hands, and the State Department will give this program to the same sort of people that the government has turned to over and over again - people in the Muslim leadership who are more on bin Laden's side than ours," Pipes said.

Hedieh Mirahmadi of Islamic Supreme Council of America said her group was interested in the program, but even it had worries.

"If we want them to come and enjoy the American experience, we have to be careful about who is bringing them and what they are learning," Mirahmadi told the Post.

However, the State Department, as usual, seems more interested in political correctness than preventing terrorism.

"We've found in the past that this type of exchange can be very effective in breaking down stereotypes," gushed Stephen Hart, deputy assistant secretary for professional exchanges in State's Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

Bush Administration
Immigration/Borders
War on Terrorism

[MadelineZapeezda]

WTF??????????

[goldstategop]

Import Al Qaeda Terrorists program, courtesy of Colon Bowell and the good folks in Foggy Bottom. Film at 11.

[Diogenesis]

When the State Dept is not too busy attacking American researchers
and halting research into alternative energy sources to improve US security
(led by the State Dept's Peter Zimmerman), it remains active recruiting more
Islamic fundamentalists to kill Americans here.

Mr. President, why is no-one in the Executive branch awake about this?

[Octavius]

And this is happening on which president's watch?

[meenie]

You can't beat an exchange program like this. Bring radical muslim clerics here to convert the Islamic congregation to a more radical position. Send clerics here to foreign lands to radicalize them. Way to go, State Department!

[MadRobotArtist]

What floors me, is that this is News??? I mean here in Minnesota, I've been told by Somalis that they were imported as well. Tell me our government isn't helping with the whole One World Order, Redistribution of Wealth.

[xp38]

Where's that mythical separation of mosque and state when you need it?

[GuillermoX]

Since when is it the duty of the State Department to "break down stereotypes"?

[RipSawyer]

Some years ago following a period of heavy rainfall and flooding my area was besieged by hordes of mosquitoes. I remember saying to friends and family that "we won't need to buy any mosquitoes this year." I do believe however, that I would rather buy mosquitoes than Muslim clerics.

[the]

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion...

Now where have I heard that before...

[goldstategop]

Where is the ACLU on all this? If the State Department were importing fundamentalist Christian clerics, they would ignite a firestorm over it in Washington and they'd sue to get such a program stopped cold. But since these are radical Muslim preachers, even the ACLU dreads being accused of breaking the taboo of political correctness here. After all, every one knows Islam is a religion of peace.

[gitmogrunt]

"We've found it in the past that this type of program can be very effective in breaking down stereotypes"

Yes, very effective ,particularly for making flight school training available to these scum.

[Honorary Serb]

The scheme will also send American clerics to Muslim areas abroad. The whiz kids in the mind-numbing bowels of Foggy Bottom will award grants to groups establishing programs that supposedly "enhance understanding about the place of Islam in American society."

Since islam is not just a religion, but also a movement for world domination, it is clear to me that islam has no place in American society!!!!

We therefore need NO programs to import muslims to America, clerics or otherwise. Instead, we need programs to DEPORT them!!!!

[Texas Jack]

When all of the finger pointing about who did what when started several months ago, the INS was receiving the bulk of attention about its inefficiencies. A friend of mine was lamenting about a recent news article depicting the INS's ineptitude. My response to him was, they are typical of all government bureaucracies.

More recently we find that the vaunted FBI is best at shooting Randy Weaver's wife and kids, or burning 80 or so innocent people to death in Waco than they are at doing any kind of actual work to protect US citizens from terrorist. They are so inept, that even though they had informants inside of the supposed "white supermast" organization that Timothy McViegh associated with, they were unable to stop the murder of 168 innocent people Oklahoma City.

Let's face it folks, 99% of the people who work in government bureaucracies are on "make work" projects. They have nothing to do other than dream up "cleric exchange" programs, much to the detriment of most hard working Americans.

And while, all of this is going on, another Somalian exchange student is working at an airport near you, wanding a 70 year old white woman to make your next flight more secure.

Seventy years of leftist ideology will certainly make any sane person wonder what is going on.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Seems like they've taken over the Minneapolis airport (last time I looked).

[bvw]

Just to add some personal observations: my war refugee Bosnian Muslim friends are having a very difficult time getting their family members to come visit since 9/11 -- it was much easier before then. Very hard to get visas since. Not even parents in their seventies/eighties.

[Texas_Jarhead]

All those boobs that think the President endorsing National Prayer day or that students praying before a footbal game violates the 1st Amendment ought to be going nuts over something like this - separation of chruch and state and all.

[goldstategop]

but but but.... Muslims aren't those wacko right wing Christians!!! <sarcasm

[Lazamataz]

"We've found in the past that this type of exchange can be very effective in breaking down stereotypes," gushed Stephen Hart.

One stereotype that we have dispelled is that you have a brain in your friggin' head, Steven Hart!!!!!