Controversy is his second name.
Farrakhan and Nation of Islam ties
While a law student in 1989 and 1990, Ellison wrote several columns as Keith E. Hakim in the student newspaper, the Minnesota Daily. In the articles, he defended Louis Farrakhan against accusations of antisemitism, and suggested that affirmative action served as a "sneaky" way of paying reparations to African Americans for slavery.[68][69][70] In another article, he purportedly suggested the creation of a separate state for black residents.[71][72]
In 1997, when Joanne Jackson, executive director of the Minneapolis Initiative Against Racism (MIAR), allegedly said that, "Jews are among the most racist white people", Ellison, using his religious name Mohammed, read a statement supporting her on behalf of the The Minneapolis-St. Paul Study Group of the Nations of Islam.[69][73] Ellison later suggested that he used the controversy to "[speak] out in favor of increased dialogue between the Jewish and African-American communities." In 1998, during his Minnesota State Legislature House campaign, Ellison asserted that he "rejected anti-Jewish attitudes".[74]
Questions about Ellison's involvement with the Nation of Islam arose during his 2006 campaign. After winning the Democratic party nomination in May, he wrote a letter to the local Jewish Community Relations Council where he reportedly "asserted that his involvement with the Nation of Islam had been limited to an 18-month period around the time of the Million Man March in 1995, that he had been unfamiliar with the Nation of Islam's anti-Semitic views during his involvement with the group, and that he himself had never expressed such views."[69][75] He also stated that he was never a member of the Nation of Islam, but only worked with it to organize the Minnesota contingent to the Million Man March,[68][69] and has insisted he is a Sunni Muslim.[76][77]
In Ellison's letter, he denounced the Nation of Islam and Farrakhan, writing "I wrongly dismissed concerns that they [Farrakhan's remarks] were anti-Semitic. They were and are anti-Semitic and I should have come to that conclusion earlier than I did."[78] He explained his previous views, saying that he, "did not adequately scrutinize the positions and statements of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, and Khalid Muhammed." He also stated that "any kind of discrimination and hate are wrong. This has always been my position".
CAIR campaign contributions
During the 2006 election Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and James Yee, the former Muslim chaplain at Guantanamo Bay, spoke at an August 25 fundraiser for Ellison.[68][79] According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune Ellison accepted thousands of dollars from Nihad Awad and another leader of CAIR; Ellison responded that he had fully disclosed all contributions and asserted that he had "nothing to hide".[80] Ellison stressed that he was supported by individuals, and that the organization CAIR itself did not endorse him.[81] His Republican opponent in the race, Alan Fine, criticized Ellison for accepting these contributions. Fine said that CAIR was "a group that Democrats say has deep ties to terrorism".[82] The Fine campaign quoted Sens. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) alleging CAIR's "ties to terrorism" and "its association with groups that are suspect." Many conservatives and Jewish groups claim CAIR is rooted in the Hamas movement and that its leaders also secretly support Hezbollah in Lebanon. Fine went so far as to say "CAIR is to Muslims as the Ku Klux Klan is to Christians."[83] During the 2006 election Independence Party candidate Tammy Lee also accused CAIR of having secret ties to Hamas.[84] CAIR director Nihad Awad has known Ellison since they both attended the University of Minnesota.[6][83]
In response to Ellison's opponents, CAIR leaders Parvez Ahmed and Nihad Awad wrote "We are proud of our personal donations to Ellison's campaign" and derided any 'guilt by association' arguments.[85] During this time the "Not in the Name of Islam" paid advertisement began appearing on Minnesota television channels for the first time, with Communications Director of CAIR, Florida Ahmed Bedier, coordinating the ad campaign.
During October 2006, Ellison traveled to Florida on a fundraising tour that "included a party hosted by Altaf Ali, CAIR's state director there".[84][86] The party had a suggested donation of $100.[87] Since winning the 2006 election, Ellison and CAIR have continued their association.
Campaign finance violations
Campaign finance has also been an issue for Ellison. In early 2006, the Minnesota State Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board reprimanded Ellison for unreported contributions, discrepancies in cash balances, and misclassified disbursements. These transgressions occurred in the years 2002–2004. In 2005 when the board tried to get more information about the problems in Ellison's reports, they got no response from Ellison or his treasurer (his wife Kim). When the board heard nothing, they opened the investigation. Ellison was subpoenaed and fined.[88][89] The board has also fined Ellison numerous times for late filings[90] been sued twice by the attorney general, and has been warned many times for absent or incomplete disclosure.[68][75][91][92]
Nonpayment of fines and taxes
Ellison's license to drive an automobile has been suspended multiple times for failure to pay tickets and fines. When asked in 2006 how many times his license has been suspended, he said, "I don't know how many prior suspensions I've had; I don't keep count."[75]
Ellison also failed to pay all or part of his income taxes in five separate years between 1992 and 2000, forcing the state and Internal Revenue Service to put liens on his home. He later paid in excess of $18,000.[3][93]
CNN interview with Glenn Beck
On November 14, 2006, Glenn Beck of CNN Headline News[94] said to Ellison, "I have been nervous about this interview with you, because what I feel like saying is, 'Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies.' And I know you're not. I'm not accusing you of being an enemy, but that's the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way." Ellison replied that his constituents, "know that I have a deep love and affection for my country. There's no one who's more patriotic than I am, and so you know, I don't need to — need to prove my patriotic stripes."
When asked by Beck about his opinion on "Muslim extremists" Ellison replied, "They're criminals. But I think that people who commit criminal acts should be treated like criminals, regardless of their faith."[94] Ellison has also said, "Osama bin Laden no more represents Islam than Timothy McVeigh represented Christianity."[95]
Asked about the incident later, Ellison dismissed it, "It's just shock TV. Some pundits think they have to ask the most outrageous questions."[96] On January 2, 2007, Beck said on his radio program that Ellison did not take offense at the comments and the two had a friendly chat off the air. On January 9, 2007, at the Television Critics Association's semiannual press tour, Beck said it was "Quite possibly the poorest-worded question of all time." He clarified by saying, "My point to Keith Ellison ... is the same point that I make to my own faith, and that is — you must stand up before things get out of control ... And it's important for people of all faiths, when someone is hijacking their religion, to stand and say, 'That is not what we do. That is not who we are."' [97]
Quran Oath Controversy of the 110th United States Congress
Main article: Qur'an oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (left) and Ellison (right) at his swearing in ceremony with Thomas Jefferson's Quran
Because Ellison stated an intent to use the Quran instead of a Bible at his photo-op reenactment of the swearing in ceremony (the official ceremony is done en masse without any books), Conservative columnist Dennis Prager wrote a column criticizing him.[98] This drew responses from organizations such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the American Family Association, and the Anti-Defamation League.
Fifth-term Rep. Virgil Goode (R-VA), responding to "scores and hundreds of emails"[99] from his constituents after the Prager articles, has also stated his view that Ellison's decision to use the Quran is a threat to "the values and beliefs traditional to the United States of America".[100] He also wrote, "...if American citizens don't wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Quran."
CNN reported that on January 4, 2007 (the opening day of Congress), Ellison met Goode on the House floor to shake hands and Goode accepted an offer to talk over coffee.[101]
That same day during his oath reenactment, Ellison used a two volume Quran published in London in 1764 that was once owned by Thomas Jefferson[102] and loaned to Ellison by "the rare book and special collections division at the Library of Congress"; coincidentally, Jefferson's home at Monticello was actually located in Goode's district.[103] According to Ellison, "It demonstrates that from the very beginning of our country, we had people who were visionary, who were religiously tolerant, who believed that knowledge and wisdom could be gleaned from any number of sources, including the Quran."[104] Historian Kevin J. Hayes in his book How Thomas Jefferson Read the Qur'an explains that Jefferson purchased the book in 1765 while studying for the bar exam to become a lawyer (when he began questioning British Common Law after the Stamp Act Crisis).[105]
President Barack Obama in an address to nations with a majority Muslim population made in Cairo, Egypt on June 4, 2009 cited this event as an example of the continual positive impact Muslims have had on America, saying, "And when the first Muslim-American was recently elected to Congress, he took the oath to defend our Constitution using the same Holy Quran that one of our Founding Fathers—Thomas Jefferson—kept in his personal library."[106]
Rights of individuals
In an interview with the BBC's Program Outlook, on Nov. 12th 2010, Ellison was asked the sort of people he represents. He answered: "The district I represent is the kind of district where you can have a Member of Congress stand up for religious tolerance and against religious bigotry, against anyone, but also stand up for the rights of gays too." [107]
Comments: Reichstag fire and 9/11
On July 8, 2007, Ellison discussed the power of the executive branch in the US currently in a speech before the organization Atheists for Human Rights. He stated that Dick Cheney asserts it is "beneath his dignity in order for him to answer any questions from the citizens of the United States. That is the very definition of totalitarianism, authoritarianism and dictatorship."[108] He went on to say, "It's almost like the Reichstag fire, kind of reminds me of that. After the Reichstag was burned, they blamed the Communists for it and it put the leader of that country Hitler in a position where he could basically have authority to do whatever he wanted. The fact is that I'm not saying September 11 was a U.S. plan, or anything like that because, you know, that's how they put you in the nut-ball box — dismiss you."[108]
Fox News picked up the story[109] and their commentator John Gibson categorized Ellison's comments as accusing "Bush of planning and executing the 9/11 attacks".[110] In the Congress Reps. Eric Cantor (R-VA) and Zach Wamp (R-TN) wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demanding she "swiftly and immediately" reprimand Ellison for his remarks.[111] The letter said "Even if Ellison asserts that he was not implying that 9/11 was orchestrated by the administration, the comparison he draws between Hitler and the president of United States is disgraceful. These comments inflame hatred and division at a time when we should be promoting our unity and reconciliation."[111][112] The Anti-Defamation League also stated "Whatever his views may be on the administration's response to 9/11 and the conduct of the war on terrorism, likening it to Hitler's rise to power and Nazism is odious and demeans the victims of 9/11 and the brave American men and women engaged in the war on terror. Furthermore, it demonstrates a profound lack of understanding about the horrors that Hitler and his Nazi regime perpetrated."[111]
When later questioned about his comments, Ellison told a reporter that Osama bin Laden, and not the Bush administration, was responsible for the attacks.[113] Ellison also said, "In the aftermath of a tragedy, space is opened up for governments to take action that they could not have achieved before that." He pointed to the Iraq War and provisions granting greater arrest and surveillance powers within the USA PATRIOT Act as examples.[114] Ellison also "In response to a question, I stated that the Bush Administration exploited post-9/11 fears to advance a policy agenda that has undermined our civil liberties. I stand by this statement. ...I want to be clear that the murderous Nazi regime is historically distinct and the horror of the Holocaust must be acknowledged as a unique event in human history. I did not intend any direct comparison between the totalitarian state of Nazi Germany and the current administration. I have taken consistent and strong stands against Holocaust denial throughout my life in public service."[111]
Sali remarks
Rep. Bill Sali (R-ID) drew criticism for his comments in an August 8, 2007 interview with the conservative Christian-based American Family News Network. Sali, an outspoken Evangelical Christian, denounced the Senate leadership for allowing a Hindu to lead the opening prayer. He held that invoking a non-Christian god in the Senate threatened to endanger America by removing "the protective hand of God."[115] He then went on to say "We have not only a Hindu prayer being offered in the Senate, we have a Muslim member of the House of Representatives now, Keith Ellison from Minnesota. Those are changes and they are not what was envisioned by the Founding Fathers. The principles that this country was built on, that have made it great over these centuries, were Christian principles derived from Scripture. You know the Lord can make the rain fall on the just and the unjust alike." Former Idaho Democratic congressman Richard Stallings, among others, demanded that Sali either apologize or resign. In response Sali sent Ellison an e-mail saying he "meant no offense."[116] At the time Ellison was in Iraq with a congressional delegation, his spokesperson said "The congressman just doesn't respond to comments like that."[117] Sali stressed to reporters that he was not calling for Ellison to be removed, "He got elected the same way I did. People certainly have the right to elect anyone they want."[117] Sali defended his claim about America's founding principles, saying, "The idea that somehow we can move to multiculturalism and still remain the same — I think that's a little dangerous, too. From my standpoint, I believe the Founding Fathers were overwhelmingly Christian and the God they were talking about is the God of the Bible."[117] When asked about his policy discussions with those of other faiths he stated, "I would say, 'These are principles that I think are important,' and if he agrees with those, great. At the end of the game, maybe it does get down to religious beliefs and how they impact how you make public policy."[117] It has been noted in a New York Sun editorial that claims dogging Ellison that the founders of the US did not anticipate Muslim legislators are incorrect.[118] The specific subject was brought up in many of the State conventions to ratify the Constitution, including remarks by William Lancaster in the North Carolina Ratifying Convention in 1788.[118][119]
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