Mrs. Anthony Weiner’s largely unexamined close connections to radical Islamists such as The Muslim Brotherhood: Part I — The Opening Salvos

A retrospective look at the controversies that have swirled around Huma Abedin, wife of Anthony Weiner, and confidante and adviser to Hillary Clinton 

Interest in Huma Abedin began in earnest in July and August 2012. Michele Bachmann and four other Republican Members of Congress had sent letters to various officials at the Department of State, Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice  raising security concerns related to Huma Abedin, a high level assistant and advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. However, those letters didn’t become very  newsworthy until they were renounced on the Senate floor by maverick Republican Senator John McCain, which sentiments  were soon picked up and echoed by the Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner.

In early July 2012, five Republican Members of Congress led by Michele Bachmann, cosigned letters and delivered them to the Inspectors General of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice and the State Department. The Congressional letters  asked  that those inspectors general investigate Muslim Brotherhood influence on top government officials, most notably Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Copies of the letters were also sent to the appropriate members of the Congressional leadership, including the House Speaker. Contained in Bachmann’s seventeen page letter was general background and specific information concerning Huma Abedin, a longtime Hillary Clinton staffer, who at that time held the position of Deputy Chief of Staff to the Secretary of State (also, she  was then and continues to be the wife of Anthony Weiner, now running for Mayor of New York City). The GOP lawmakers’ letters noted that Huma Abedin “has three family members [including, her late father, mother and her brother, who have been] connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations. Her position [with Secretary of State Clinton] affords her routine access to the secretary and to policymaking.”

Interestingly, it was only when certain members of the Washington GOP establishment spoke up on behalf of Secretary of State Clinton’s assistant that  the mainstream media swarmed to Huma Abedin’s defense, with editorials in both the New York Times and the Washington Post raising the specter of “McCarthyism” [ Oh no, anything but that ! ! ! ].  However, few of the so called “defenses” advanced on behalf of Huma Abedin denied or even directly addressed the initial charges that she had multiple familial and other personal connections to radical Islamic organizations (See e.g.: “John McCain Slams Michele Bachmann's 'Unfounded' Attacks On Huma Abedin, Muslim-Americans” by Amanda Terkel, 7/18/12, Huffington Post [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/18/john-mccain-michele-bachmann-muslim_n_1683277.html]; “EDITORIAL –  McCarthyism Redux” by NYT Editorial Dept, 7/18/13,  NY Times Blog/ Print Edition [http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/19/opinion/mccarthyism-redux.html?_r=2&ref=todayspaper&]; “Michele Bachmann’s baseless attack on Huma Abedin” by the Washington Post Editorial Board, 7/19/12, WP Opinions [http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-07-19/opinions/35489144_1_huma-abedin-muslim-brotherhood-presidential-nomination]; “Hillary Clinton: Huma Abedin Attacks Have 'No Place In Our Politics' ” by Jennifer Bendery, 7/30/12, Huffington Post [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/30/hillary-clinton-huma-abedin_n_1721416.html]).

Michele Bachmann was quick to push back and explain the importance of the letters that she had sent out along with he fellow Republican Congressmen ( See “BACHMANN HITS BACK AT CRITICS REGARDING HER LETTER ABOUT MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD AND ITS U.S. TENTACLES” by Jonathan M. Seidi, 7/19/12, The Blaze [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/07/19/bachmann-hits-back-at-mccain-critics-regarding-her-letter-about-muslim-brotherhood-and-its-u-s-tentacles/]). According to Congresswoman Bachmann, when interviewed by Glenn Beck,  “Never before in the history of the country have we seen this level of leaks coming out, but at the same time there’s also a parallel track of influence from the Muslim Brotherhood in the highest levels of the federal government, and we think that we need to get answers to these questions.... And that’s the purpose of our letters. We’re asking that the inspectors general answer these questions....”  Bachmann then complained that Abedin is a top aide to Hillary Clinton, but she has family ties to the Muslim Brotherhood; arguing as follows: “She is the chief aid for the -- to the Secretary of State, and we quoted from a document, and this has been well reported all across Arab media, that her father -- her late father who’s now deceased was a part of the Muslim Brotherhood.... Her brother was a part of the Muslim Brotherhood, and her mother was a part of what’s called the Muslim Sisterhood....  [W]e have requirements to get a high level security clearance.  One thing that the government looks at are your associations, and in particular your family associations.  And this applies to everyone.  It would be the same that is true with me.  If my family members were associated with Hamas, a terrorist organization, that alone could be sufficient to disqualify me from getting a security clearance.  So all we did is ask, did the federal government look into her family associations before she got a high level security clearance....”

Simultaneously, Bachmann and company quickly had their own chorus of defenders, as well as many more Huma Abedin accusers, across the whole Republican-right spectrum along with other investigators of radical Islamist influence. Several would add information to what GOP Congresswoman Bachmann and her colleagues had originally sent to the various Obama Administration IGs.  One such Bachmann supporter presented an argument with factual allegations that were especially succinct and informative (See “THREE REASONS WHY REP. BACHMANN MIGHT BE RIGHT ABOUT HUMA ABEDIN” by Awr Hawkins, 7/21/13, Breitbart/Big Peace [http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2012/07/20/What-if-Sen-McCain-is-Wrong-and-Rep-Bachmann-is-Right]).  According to Awr Hawkins:
“In order to dismiss Bachmann's concerns, we have to ignore three huge problems [for Huma Abedin, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Obama Administration]:
1. Abedin's mother is not only a member of the Muslim Sisterhood, but also sits on the Guidance Board of the organization. This makes her not only a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's female auxiliary, but also a prestigious member.
2. Another member of the Muslim Sisterhood's Guidance Bureau is Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi's wife, which means Abedin's mother and the wife of an renowned Muslim Brotherhood member are in regular and frequent contact.
3. Lastly, Abedin's brother, Hassan Abedin, has allegedly collaborated with Omar Naseef and Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, two of the most influential terror supporters in the world....”

As the days passed in July 2012, information about Huma Abedin continued to gush out, only to be ignored by the MSM. By July 25th, it had been reported by Aaron Klien in the World Net Daily blog that Huma Abedin was part of a family and close personal network of many Arab and Islamic extremists (See “Hillary’s chief worked with al-Qaida front man – Huma Abedin at center of Capitol Hill storm over Muslim Brotherhood” by Aaron Klein, 7-25-12  [http://www.wnd.com/2012/07/hillarys-chief-worked-with-al-qaida-front-man/]).  According to Klein, Huma Abedin personally worked on the editorial board of a Saudi-financed Islamic think tank alongside a Muslim extremist, Abdullah Omar Naseef, who has been accused of financing various al-Qaida fronts – this meant Huma Abedin’s relation to Naseef was one of personal contact, thus not just a mere association through her brother.

Klein’s report provided added details that Abdullah Omar Naseef had long and deep connections to the Abedin family. For example, Naseef had been Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, an Islamic charity known to have spawned terrorist groups, including one listed by the U.S. government to be an official al-Qaida front. Also Huma’s mother, Anthony Weiner’s mother-in-law, Saleha Abedin, had been the official representative of Naseef’s Muslim World League in the 1990s. The Muslim World League has been accused of terrorist ties, as have its various offshoots, including the International Islamic Relief Organization, or IIRO, and Al Haramain, which was declared by the U.S. and U.N. as a terror financing front. In addition, Huma’s mother Saleha Abedin is known to have been close to Najla Ali Mahmoud, the wife of Egypt’s recently deposed president, Mohammed Mursi. Again, all of this information and much more of similar import was contained in Aaron Klein’s detailed July 25th article.

The most authoritative bit of support for Bachmann’s and her congressional compatriots interrogatory missives was a piece that appeared in the National Review by Andrew C. McCarthy ( See “Huma Abedin’s Muslim Brotherhood Ties –  Michele Bachmann has every right to ask questions” by Andrew C. McCarthy, 7/25/13,  National Review On line [http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/312211/huma-abedin-s-muslim-brotherhood-ties-andrew-c-mccarthy]).

National Review’s Andrew McCarthy initially directed his fiery rhetoric at Michele Bachmann’s Republican critic’s, but quickly ranged in on his real target, as follows:  “Despite mounting evidence of close ties between the Muslim Brotherhood and Huma Abedin, Secretary of State Clinton’s close aide, Republican congressional leaders — particularly Senator John McCain and House Speaker John Boehner  —  continue to target their ire not at the State Department but at Representative Michele Bachmann. ***  Representative Bachmann is one of five House conservatives who have raised concerns about Muslim Brotherhood infiltration of our government. Glenn Beck reported Tuesday that GOP leadership is trying to extort an apology out of Bachmann by threatening to boot her from the House Intelligence Committee if she fails to submit. ***  That got me to wondering: Any chance Speaker Boehner might take just a couple of minutes out of his busy jihad against Bachmann to focus on how the State Department — during Ms. Abedin’s tenure — has cozied up to Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Muslim Brotherhood’s chief sharia jurist?”

Then Andrew C. McCarthy,  the successful Federal Anti-Terrorist prosecutor, hammered home his point, thus: “Sheikh Qaradawi is a promoter of jihadist terror. His fatwas endorse terrorist attacks against American personnel in Iraq as well as suicide bombing — by both men and women — against Israel. He is a leading supporter of Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Palestinian branch. He also runs an umbrella organization called the Union for Good (sometimes referred to as the ‘Union of Good’), which is formally designated a terrorist organization under American law. The Union for Good was behind the ‘Peace Flotilla’ that attempted to break our ally Israel’s blockade of the terrorist organization Hamas ... in 2010.”

Lastly, McCarthy didn’t flinch when he took on Huma Abedin’s mother head-on with this  — “That’s rather interesting — at least to me, though apparently not to Speaker Boehner — because Huma Abedin’s mother, Saleha, who is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood’s female division (the “Muslim Sisterhood”), is a major figure in not one but two Union for Good components. The first is the International Islamic Council for Dawa and Relief (IICDR). It is banned in Israel for supporting Hamas under the auspices of the Union for Good. Then there’s the International Islamic Committee for Woman and Child (IICWC) — an organization that Dr. Saleha Abedin has long headed. Dr. Abedin’s IICWC describes itself as part of the IICDR. And wouldn’t you know it, the IICWC charter was written by none other than . . . Sheikh Qaradawi, in conjunction with several self-proclaimed members of the Muslim Brotherhood.”  Mr. McCarthy summed up by tying-up the Huma Abdedin influence very tightly to the Hillary Clinton-Barack Obama foreign policy initiatives that were decidedly pro-Muslim Brotherhood, and which have since blown up completely in Egypt, North Africa and across the Middle East.

All of that is why about a month after the McCain, Boehner and MSM defenses of Huma Abedin, a reporter for Breitbart News opened his report with this:  “Rep. Michele Bachmann's concerns about Sec.of State Clinton's Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin have been openly criticized by many, yet disproved by none. Far from it in fact, as the alleged ties between Huma's family and the Muslim Brotherhood have been broadly substantiated....” (See “HUMA ABEDIN'S TIES TO MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD DEEPER THAN REP. BACHMANN SUSPECTED” by Awr Hawkins, 8/13/12, Breitbart/Big Peace [http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2012/08/12/Huma-Abedin-s-Ties-to-Muslim-Brotherhood-May-Be-Even-Deeper-Than-Rep-Bachmann-Suspected]). In that article, Hawkins went on to report that Walid Shoebat, a key investigator into Huma Abedin, was about to release additional damning news about Huma Abedin and her relations with radical Islamists, including more information about Huma's own direct ties to Abdullah Omar Nasseef, a "financier" of terrorism with whom Huma was associated when she was part of his organization, the Institute of Muslim Minority Affairs (IMMA), prior to taking her position with Hillary Clinton; and also more details about the Abedin family and Yusuf Qaradawi, describing him as “the spiritual head of the Muslim Brotherhood.”