Rep. Frank Wolf Calls Out Grover Norquist on Jihad TiesBy Robert Spencer http://www.jihadwatch.org/
Last Tuesday on the House floor, Rep. Frank Wolf (R.-Va.) showed more courage than most of the members of his party have ever managed to summon: He called out influential Republican power broker and anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist for, among other things, his close ties to jihad terrorists and Islamic supremacists.Many anti-jihadists have been concerned for years about Norquist's jihad ties, and his deleterious influence on the Republican Party, but that concern ended abruptly when it turned out that Norquist was close friends with Rick Perry. People who had been on record repeatedly criticizing Norquist for being in bed with Islamic supremacists suddenly discovered that, hey, everyone does it (ignoring the fact that Norquist is closer to Perry than he is to other candidates), and what's a few Hamas ties among friends, anyway?But not Wolf. On the House floor, Wolf said of Norquist, "Documentation shows that he has deep ties to supporters of Hamas and other terrorist organizations that are sworn enemies of the United States and our ally Israel." He pointed out that "around the years 2000 and 2001, Mr. Norquist's firm represented Abdurahman Alamoudi, who was convicted two years later for his role in a terrorist plot and who is presently serving a 23-year sentence in federal prison."Norquist, reported Wolf, "also associated with terror financier Sami Al-Arian, according to Mary Jacoby's reporting in March 2003, in the St. Petersburg Times. Al-Arian pled guilty in 2006 'to a charge of conspiring to provide services to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a specially designated terrorist organization, in violation of U.S. law,' and is under house arrest, according to a Department of Justice press release. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad's 'paramilitary wing-the al-Quds Brigades-has conducted numerous attacks, including large-scale suicide bombings,' according to the National Counterterrorism Center."These are the kinds of people for whom Norquist opened doors. Norquist, said Wolf, "served as a key facilitator between Al-Arian, Alamoudi and the White House. … In June 2001, Al-Arian was among the members of the American Muslim Council invited to the White House complex. ... The next month, the National Coalition to Protect Political Freedom-a civil liberties group headed by Al-Arian-gave Norquist an award for his work to abolish the use of secret intelligence evidence in terrorism cases."Wolf also pointed out that Norquist "even used Americans for Tax Reform to circulate a petition in support of the 'Ground Zero Mosque,' " which 70% of Americans oppose. "Why would Americans for Tax Reform," Wolf asked, "circulate a petition in support of the 'Ground Zero Mosque?' For the families of those who lost loved ones on 9/11 or during operations in the War on Terror, concerns about the 'Ground Zero Mosque' were neither a ploy nor a distraction, as Norquist described it."Norquist's influence on the Republican Party is extraordinarily damaging, as it keeps on leading so many to turn a blind eye to the stealth jihad that Norquist continues so energetically to advance. Congressman Wolf deserves congratulations, and the gratitude of every patriot, for having the courage that so many lack, and calling out Norquist on the floor of Congress.In his response to Wolf, Norquist showed how thoroughly he has mastered the tried-and-true tactic of his Islamic supremacist partners: He cried racism, smearing his opponent, and claiming victim status when his wrongdoing was pointed out, instead of responding with anything substantive.Norquist dubbed Wolf's allegations "disgusting," claiming that "some staffer of his went onto the racist websites, you know, dug up stuff from 10 years ago. I'm married to a woman who's Muslim, and it's sad and it's disgusting. It reflects poorly on him. I think given his district, he's going to spend a lot of time apologizing for getting into the gutter and anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bigotry. I suppose this staffer who got this stuff off websites did as much chucking [sic] as the idiots who put it forward."Norquist said that Wolf's charges were "just silly. It's just a series of rants that mean nothing and have no effect on anything, and are neither honorable or honest." But Wolf stood by his remarks, saying: "There's a clear pattern there. You need to look at who he's associated with."Indeed. Unless, of course, you're so in thrall to the prospect of a Rick Perry presidency that suddenly a guy who's in bed with Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood doesn't seem so bad after all.

Mr. Spencer is director of Jihad Watch and author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades), The Truth About Muhammad, Stealth Jihad and The Complete Infidel's Guide to the Koran (all from Regnery-a HUMAN EVENTS sister company).