Mayoral Candidate Anthony Weiner Showing More and More Islamist Connections — Now it’s their money

It’s risen to a chorus of questions and criticisms about Weiner’s acceptance of funding that looks like it’s coming from Al Jazeera  —  Not very long ago, it was Weiner’s going after Congressional Homeland Security hearings about the radicalization of Muslims, as well as being critical of the NYPD anti-terrorist surveillance  programs if they offend Muslim sensibilities  —  for much longer than that has been a growing and openly-expressed distrust of Weiners’ biggest supporter, Huma Abedin, his wife who has strong familial connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.  

A few days ago the New York Post reported that Anthony Weiner had received took donations from a paid advocate for the Al Jazeera TV network.  According to that report in the Post, records show, “John Merrigan, a lobbyist for Al Jazeera America Holdings, donated the maximum, $4,950, to Weiner’s mayoral campaign this month....” ( See “Jazeera bets on Weiner” by Sally Goldenberg and Aaron Feis, 7/16/13, NY Post [http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/jazeera_bets_on_weiner_meYw5hHggwDaNc4yShI7TL]).
In that same article, was a brief report about Weiner’s attempt  to clarify comments that he had made impliedly comparing certain NYPD policies and practices to 1938 Nazi Germany.

Now it looks like the story about the donation from the Al Jazeera lobbyist has some legs. Although Anthony Weiner is running as the only Jewish candidate in the crowded Democratic field for mayor in 2013, and he has often touted his support of Israel; he is being beat like drum by two well known Brooklyn Democrats, Councilman Lew Fidler and Assemblyman Alan Maisel.  Both represent districts that are predominantly Jewish, and they are now chastising Weiner for his taking contributions from lobbyist John Merrigan, who has done extensive work with the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network, which has long been accused of being anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and anti-United States (See “More heat on Weiner over ‘Jazeera’ cash”
by Sally Goldenberg, 7/20/13, NY Post [http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/more_heat_on_weiner_over_jazeera_7YA2d4XD5GFzwO3ipwrKjO]).  According to the Post report, Fidler said, “Al Jazeera and its lobbyists are no friends to New York City or our Jewish community, and Anthony shouldn’t accept their support.... They have spread hate and lies against Jews, not only here in New York but across the world. The right thing to do is to give this money back. Anthony should do exactly that.”

In addition to the two Brooklyn Democrats mentioned above, the internet has lit up over Weiner’s acceptance of the cash from the Al Jazeera representative, John Merrigan.

A while back, at a mayoral forum in Brooklyn sponsored by the Jewish Press near the end of May, Democratic Mayoral Candidate Anthony Weiner had described Nassau Republican Congressman Peter King’s hearings about the radicalization of  Muslims in America as “shameful.” At that forum, Weiner went on to say that the Long Island Republican has no legitimate standing to talk about anti-terrorism efforts, even though Congressman King is Chairman of The House  Subcommittee on Homeland Security. In response to a question from the Jewish Press, Candidate Weiner said, “I have to say Peter King for one has precious little to say on the subject given the shameful way he’s targeted people in one particular religion at his hearings.” (See “NYC2013 – Weiner Calls Peter King’s Hearings On Islam ‘Shameful’” by Azi Paybarah, 5/31/13, JP Updates
http://jpupdates.com/2013/05/31/nyc2013-weiner-calls-peter-kings-hearings-on-islam-shameful/]; see also “NYC Mayor Candidate Weiner Calls Hearings About Radicalization of Muslims 'Shameful' ” submitted by Emily, 6/13/13, The Clarion Project Blog [http://www.clarionproject.org/content/nyc-mayor-candidate-weiner-calls-hearings-about-radicalization-muslims-shameful], which links to the same article).  At that same forum, when he turned his attention to the NYC Police surveillance program, Weiner said that although he had “absolutely no problem” with the program itself, if Muslim communities feel unfairly targeted, those programs can end up doing “more harm than good.”

Huma Abedin’s family connections to the Muslim Brotherhood and the Muslim Sisterhood have been fully reported upon in the past, at this and other political blogs and elsewhere on religious-based sites.