Arabs in Florida Angered by Bush

Los Angeles Times ^ | Peter Wallsten and John M. Glionna

[Michael Goldsberry]

ORLANDO, Fla. - Ever since President Bush (news - web sites) narrowly won Florida four years ago, Democrats have meticulously courted key voting blocs that strategists believe could help reverse the party's fortunes in 2004 - showering attention on seniors, African Americans, Jews, and Cuban and Haitian Americans.

On Sunday night, a surprising new ethnic thread wove itself into Florida's ever-complicated political fabric: the frustrated Arab American.

Business owners, physicians, lawyers and others - furious over the Bush administration's post-Sept. 11 policies that many believe unfairly target Muslims and Arab Americans in the government's quest to root out terrorists - huddled in a hotel ballroom across the street from Disney World to demonstrate how much they wanted a change in the White House.

The meeting, intended to be a bipartisan affair sponsored by the Washington-based Arab American Institute, turned into a cheering session for Democratic nominee Sen. John F. Kerry (news, bio, voting record) - illustrating a dramatic shift in a traditionally Republican group.

"I thought Bush was another Ronald Reagan (news - web sites) on a small scale for what he believed in," said Ashley Ansara, president of a clinical research company in Orlando. "I found out he's no Reagan. Not even close."

He said this would be the first presidential election since he moved to the U.S. in 1973 that he wouldn't be voting Republican.

[tiamat]

Ugggghhhhh....


Maybe if they cleaned their own house, they wouldn't have to feel this way!

[RockinRight]

Arab-Americans are mad that Bush calls a spade a spade, or, in this case, Islamofascists terrorists.

[Mears]

God,I'm sick of the whining.

You don't like it here-----LEAVE!

[mykdsmom]

furious over the Bush administration's post-Sept. 11 policies that many believe unfairly target Muslims and Arab Americans....

WaWaWa....buncha crybabies. GOOD! Even more reason to believe that Bush is doing something right.

[Alouette]

Arabs all over the planet angered by everything.

[Izzy Dunne]

You know, I am indeed sorry for those Americans who are here peaceably and suffer because of their Arab ancestry or looks.

But they surely understand where it comes from. And their (by-and-large) failure to denounce the terrorists makes it harder to separate them.
If they don't understand it, tough luck.

[Moconservative]

Typical L A times article. Find someone who doesn't like Bush and extrapolite it to some huge issue. The Times would tell us that every voter in the U. S. hates Bush. MSM spin only.

[zarf]

LOL! I love these minority outrage articles that turn up every 4 years. The Arab population is so small in Florida you wonder why they bother. Oops my bad....it's Bush's fault!

[Joe Boucher]

I am a Floridian and I am mad as hell at arabs, Muslims, and french Canadians.

[The_Republican]

I am not SHOCKED by Arab Anger against Bush. I am SHOCKED at lack of JEWISH anger against Kerry. Oh sure, compared to previous century, polls may show, more jewish voters are inclined to support us, but why not 90%?

Also, Kerry locked up the Muslim vote when he kept saying over and over, "We should reach out to Muslim world"..... He has luxury to reach out to "Muslim World" because he already has the Jewish voters in his pocket.

However, none of this matters at this point. We already know more people are registering to vote this year than the CENSUS says should evin exist.

Bush's Last Words: I see Dead People - Voting.

[isthisnickcool]

What's their complaint? US law gives them all sorts of freedoms they would not have under Sharia Law.

[Smoote]

At least they still have their heads.

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

Arabs all over the planet angered by everything.

My answer to the Muslim arabs in America:

Chill out.
Get a haircut and a shave.

Shower daily.
Use deodorant.

Get up off the ground and get a good night's sleep.

[US admirer]

We must be close to the end of the universe/time: arabs, along with the majority of jews, love the Democratic Party.

[gakrak]

Arabs unfairly targeted? Well let's,was it Arabs who flew the plains into the towers and Pentagon? Was it Arab terrorists who blew a hole in the USS Cole? Was it Arabs who killed the children in Russia? Was it Arabs who blew up the barracks in Saudi Arabia? Was it Arabs who behead foreign contractors?
Gosh I guess I would target them before they target me.
You know I never hear them denounce any of these terrorists acts but I have see the Arabs dancing in the streets celebrating the death of 3+ thousand of our fellow citizens after the 9/11 attacks.

[3AngelaD]

"...furious over the Bush administration's post-Sept. 11 policies that many believe unfairly target Muslims and Arab Americans in the government's quest to root out terrorists..." as if the Bush administration was ignoring all those Swedish,
Danish, Andorran and Tibetan terrorists who have been hijacking airliners and blowing up buildings on American soil and just picking on the poor Muslims. Disgraceful that someone wrote this, worse that no editor intervened before it saw the light of day.

[sheik yerbouty]

Let them leave for their jihadistans. They'll not be missed.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

LA Times is wrong on this.

There are many Rangers on Bush's team who are Arabs (Muslims) in Central Florida.

For anyone wondering, a "ranger" status is when you donate at least $100,000 to the Bush/Cheney re-election campaign

[atruelady]

These people need to get the h*** out of this country
and move back to the third world toilets they came from.