Franklin County Democrats “clear” HAMAS supporter

Democrats and the Franklin County Board of Commissioners are pumping the fact that a criminal background check on Abukar Arman “found no criminal or terrorist connections,” according to Franklin County Administrator Don L. Brown. This is somewhat besides the point, since Arman was not accused of any criminal activity, but rather of “praise for [US] designated terrorist organizations and individuals.” The accusations were made by Hilliard resident Patrick Poole, both on his blog and in the online FrontPage Magazine.

Here’s the Dispatch’s article on the “clearing” of Arman and here’s Patrick Poole’s response. Patrick is a bit kinder to the Dispatch than I would be. The article ignores the fact that the Democratic/county response is completely off-point.

Poole does note that the article buries what should be a significant news story in itself: that Arman, though sitting on a county board that oversees homeland security, isn’t a citizen, as all county board members are required to be. He resigned on Friday.

UPDATE: Jerid at Buckeye State Blog responds to this post:

Point blank, the county response was appropriate. They noted there was no terrorist connection. Anyone that tells you otherwise is letting their own bias get in the way of the facts. Also, these folks should be admonished for trying to tie terrorism to Democrats, even after the individual in question is cleared. Columbuser makes a nice try of this with his headline “Franklin County Democratys ‘clear’ HAMAS supporter,” and RAB previously tried to use the issue against Mayor Coleman. The issue for these folks is that they think Abukar inappropriately praised Islamic organizations they don’t approve of. I don’t have too much to weigh in on that issue, however, I would note that the investigation found that Abukar broke no law.

Not too much to weigh in on indeed. HAMAS of course is designated by the US government as a terrorist organization.

HAMAS was designated as a terrorist organization in 1995 pursuant to Executive Order 12947, and also in 1996 pursuant to the Antiterrorism Act. On November 2 of this year, it was added to the list of terrorist organizations subject to action under Executive Order 13224.

Please note: 1995! Can’t blame Bush or crazy rightwingers for that. Here’s the ADL on HAMAS:

Hamas preaches and engages in violence and terror in order to destroy the state of Israel and replace it with an Islamic state. Its virulent hatred of Jews and Judaism is deeply rooted in the anti-Semitic writings of Muslim Brotherhood theologians.

In August 1988, Hamas issued its Covenant laying down its ideological principles and goals. Replete with anti-Semitism, it echoes the notorious Protocols of the Elders of Zion and charges Jews with an international conspiracy to gain control of the world.

For those who think the US government and the ADL are not trustworthy organizations, here’s Hillary Clinton on HAMAS:

Sen. Hillary Clinton called on the international community to shun Hamas.

“No nation in the world should recognize a government” committed to its neighbor’s destruction, the Democratic senator from New York said Sunday at the annual congressional breakfast sponsored by the New York Jewish Community Relations Council.

So it’s not an issue of an Islamic organization that just I or “rightwingers” disapprove of. Now here’s Abukar Arman on HAMAS on his own blog in his own words:

Hamas Victory Is A Victory for Democracy and Peace!

Some are shocked..others are perplexed..yet, others are elated- Hamas has taken its political struggle to the ballot box!

Regardless of what camp one hails from, one fact remains self-evident: the historical event of last Wednesday is a remarkable expression of the will of a voiceless and indeed oppressed people, a triumph for democracy, and, a giant step toward lasting peace.

Therefore, it is incumbent upon the International Community and the peace-loving peoples of the world to embrace this historical development and to welcome Hamas as a bona fide representative of the Palestinian people and a partner in the peace process.

Still think there’s no issue here? Arman holds these views and yet sat on a county board that oversees Franklin County homeland security, and he wasn’t even a US citizen to boot.

But no, Arman hasn’t been shown to have broken any law. Keep repeating that until all this goes away.