He accomplished that by criticizing President Bush and introducing a new initiative -- his "Let's stop using the term 'Islamic fascists'" movement.
In remarks before the Arab American Institute today, U.S. Senator Russ Feingold called on the President to stop using the phrase “Islamic fascists,” an offensive and misleading term. The administration has used this phrase increasingly when talking about al Qaeda, its affiliates and its sympathizers. Feingold says the use of the term “Islamic fascists” actually hurts our efforts in fighting terrorism globally because it alienates peaceful Muslims around the world whose support we need in fighting terrorism.
“I call on the President to stop using the phrase “Islamic fascists”, a label that doesn’t make any sense, and certainly doesn’t help our effort to build a coalition of societies to fight terrorism,” Feingold said. “The President has often correctly referred to Islam as a religion of peace, but this reckless language, much like his prior reference to the fight against al Qaeda as a ‘crusade,’ completely cuts the other way. Fascist ideology doesn’t have anything to do with the way global terrorist networks think or operate, and it doesn’t have anything to do with the overwhelming majority of Muslims around the world who practice the peaceful teachings of Islam.”
Text of Feingold's remarks
(Excerpt)
And as we work to protect this nation, we must make it absolutely clear that we are fighting terrorists – not the religion those terrorists claim to represent. We must avoid using misleading and offensive terms that link Islam with those who subvert this great religion or who distort its teachings to justify terrorist activities.
This is nothing but a load of political posturing.
President Bush used the term "Islamic fascists" when he was commenting on the foiled terrorist plot to blow transatlantic flights from London to the U.S. out of the sky. He made his remarks while in Green Bay. That was way back on August 10.
If Feingold felt so strongly about it, why did he wait over month to make it an issue via a high profile address?
Is he acting on principle or politics?
Lately, I think of everything that Feingold does as being calculated with his presidential goals in mind.
Ever since the 9/11 attacks, President Bush has bent over backwards to make it clear that we are NOT at war with Islam.
The way Feingold dredged up Bush's use of the term "crusade" is so lame. It's like the Dems still trying to score political points because of the way Dan Quayle spelled "potatoe."
Bush was using the term "crusade" in its secular sense. Everybody knows that, but the Dems still bring it up. To me, it smacks of desperation.
The President has been extremely careful to distinguish between peace-loving Muslims and the radical militants that hijack planes, that fly them into buildings, that take innocents hostage and behead them, and that blow themselves up to kill the infidels, all in the name of God.
Allahu Akbar!
Bush didn't introduce religion into this. Blame the terrorists for making the murder of the infidels a religious calling.
We can't simply dismiss the reality of the religious component that fuels the terrorism. And likewise, we can't dismiss the reality that there are good people and bad people who claim allegiance to Islam. We must make those differentiations, rather than pretending they don't exist.
By using the term "Islamic fascists," Bush is defining the enemy. That's not reckless. It's acknowledging reality.
And that is where the Dems screw up.
How many people have to die at the hands of these extremists before the Dems will identify them as the enemy and admit that they are using God as their chief recruiter?
The terrorists are distorting Islam. So, should God be blamed for creating more terrorists?
Feingold prefers to present Bush as the enemy rather the radical Islamic fundamentalists (AKA terrorists).
BUSH IS NOT THE ENEMY, AND NEITHER IS ISLAM.
The President has NEVER said that Islam is the enemy.
It's horrible that there are militants that have exploited Islam to advance their twisted ideology, but that's the reality.
Feingold is clueless.
The terrorists kill in the name of God.
They scream "Allahu Akbar" while beheading an innocent man or crashing a 767 into the World Trade Center.
For Feingold to put blinders on to that reality reveals how terribly unfit he is to address the terrorist threat.
Feingold must quit pretending that there isn't a religious element to this war.
Rather than criticizing Bush for speaking the truth, Feingold should come down hard on the Muslims that fail to distance themselves from the radicals, the sympathizers.
Aslam Abdullah isn't afraid to condemn the terrorists and to make the distinction between his beliefs and theirs.
Addressing the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, Abdullah writes:
You said you "invite you not to drop your weapons, and don't let your souls or your enemies rest until each one of you kills at least one American within a period that does not exceed 15 days with a sniper's gunshot or incendiary devices or Molotov cocktail or a suicide car bomb -- whatever the battle may require." I invite you to surrender, to seek forgiveness from God almighty for the senseless killing you and your supporters are involved in and repent for everything you have done.
You say that the word of God is the highest. Yes, it is. But you are not worthy of it. You have abandoned God and you have started worshipping your own satanic egos that rejoice at the killing of innocent people. You don't represent Muslims or, for that matter, any decent human being who believes in the sanctity of life. Many among us American Muslims have differences with our administration on domestic and foreign issues, just like many other Americans do. But the plurality of opinions does not mean that we deprive ourselves of the civility that God demands from us. America is our home and will always be our home. Its interests are ours, and its people are ours. When you talk of killing of Americans, you first have to kill 6 million or so Muslims who will stand for every American's right to live and enjoy the life as commanded by God.
By growing a beard, shouting some religious slogans and misquoting and misusing some verses of the divine scriptures, you cannot incite Muslims to do things that are contrary to our religion. Yes, you even fail to understand the basic Islamic principles of life and living. Islam demands peace in all aspects of life, Islam demands respect for life. Islam demands justice.
What you are doing in Iraq, Afghanistan, India or other parts of the world is anti-human and anti-divine. You are an enemy of Islam as much as you are an enemy of America. You must understand that God who entrusted you with life is the same God who spelled his spirit in every human being regardless of his or her religion or ethnicity or nationality or status. You are violating him.
We feel totally disgusted with your action and we condemn you without any reservation. Don't come to our mosques to preach this hatred. Don't visit our Islamic centers to spill the blood of innocents. Don't think that just because we share the same religion, we would show some sympathy to you.
As Abdullah clearly states, the terrorists claim allegiance to Islam but they actually are its enemies.
He recognizes that the terrorists are claiming to be faithful Muslims. As a result, he's rightly disgusted by their reliance on the religion as justification for their violence.
It's an abuse of Islam, so let Islam rise up against these extremists that are defacing the faith with horrific acts of death and destruction.
Feingold can whine about the President's choice of terms.
However, rather than making Bush look bad, Feingold comes off looking like an appeaser. He's afraid to face the harsh reality that there is an undeniable religious element to this war and it is Islam, albeit it a distorted, death-worshipping version.
By dancing around that truth, Feingold proves how weak he is. He proves how wrong he is.
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