Juan Cole lays out Rep. Anthony Weiner's Islamist bonafides:
1. Called for Columbia University professor Joseph Massad to be fired for being critical of Israel; Weiner thus spearheaded a new McCarthyism.
2. On the Israeli attack, in international waters, on the Mavi Marmara relief ship, Weiner sputtered: “”If you want to instigate a conflict with the Israeli navy it isn't hard to do. They were offered alternatives. Instead they chose to sail into the teeth of an internationally recognized blockade.” The blockade of Gaza civilians is a breach of international law; it is not internationally recognized and has on the contrary been condemned by almost every nation and human rights organization.
3. Alleged that the New York Times is anti-Israel: “Amnesty International in particular, has always had bias against Israel, and frankly I would argue that in many cases, the New York Times has, as well.”
4. Alleged that the Palestine Liberation Organization is still listed by the US as a terrorist organization. It was dropped from the list over 2 decades ago.
5. Tried to bar the Palestinian delegation to the United Nations from New York.
6. Alleged that Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestine Authority, is not the head of the PLO. He is.
7. Refused to condemn the use by Israel of cluster bombs on the civilian farms of south Lebanon in 2006.
8. Alleged that the Israeli army does not occupy the West Bank and that there is no Israeli Army presence in the West Bank.
9. Called Israel's war on Gaza a “humane” war. 400 children were killed.
10. Voted for Iraq War authorization in 2002, before later turning against the war.
Of course there's a ready-made answer for this. If Weiner is indeed a Muslim, as his marrying a Muslim would indicate, then his uncritical support for everything Israel does is mere "taqiyya," or religiously justified lying. Because we all know that the only people who lie are Muslims, and if you're having sex with a Muslim then you must secretly be one.
Look the point is not that this is stupid and crazy. It's that it's no less stupid and crazy than Herman Cain saying Muslims would have to take a special loyalty oath to serve in his administration, Rick Santorum saying sharia is an "existential threat" to the U.S., or Newt Gingrich's insinuations that Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan is sympathetic to sharia. In short, it's no less dumb or crazy than the stuff Republican politicians say every day.
