Peter King exposes radicaization methods by Muslim extremists
In U.K., Peter King defends Muslim hearings
King praised the United Kingdom’s government for its work on stemming radicalization. | AP Photo
Rep. Peter King testified before a British Parliamentary committee on Tuesday, defending his three congressional hearings on Muslim-American radicalization against “mindless criticism” and saying he will not be stopped by political correctness.
The New York Republican appeared before the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee inquiry entitled “Roots of Violent Radicalisation,” presenting his findings from the three hearings he has held on radicalization within the Muslim-American community as the House Committee on Homeland Security chairman.
He told the Parliamentary hearing he “would not back down to political correctness” and will continue to tackle what he called a “dangerous problem,” according to a copy of his testimony provided to POLITICO by his office.
“Undoubtedly, Congressional investigation of Muslim-American radicalization is the logical response to the unquestionable fact that homegrown radicalization is part of Al Qaeda’s strategy to continue attacking the United States and its allies,” King said. “I would not back down to political correctness.”
King said his hearings — despite the “mindless criticism” they received — successfully opened up discussion about Muslim radicalization in the U.S.
King also praised the United Kingdom’s government for its work on stemming Muslim radicalization, noting that its “Prevent” strategy “offers a candid assessment of the problem and a model for effectively addressing and countering this problem.” The Prevent strategy is one part of the UK’s Home Office counterterrorism program, and focuses on preventative measures to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.
King told the hearing he is “concerned that within the United States, political correctness has prevented many from sufficiently acknowledging and tackling this dangerous problem” and said studying homegrown terrorism must remain of the highest priority for both the U.S. and UK.
“While I have no doubt that the Committee’s radicalization hearings have had a significant and beneficial impact in fostering an honest dialogue about the growing issue of radicalization within the United States, I remain concerned that this problem is far from resolved,” King said, according to his prepared remarks.
King cited a recent Pew poll finding that 5 percent of Muslim Americans have a very or somewhat favorable view of Al Qaeda and 11 percent have a somewhat unfavorable view. King said in his testimony that with 2.75 million Muslim Americans, this 16 percent means there are 440,000 people who view Al Qaeda as only a somewhat unfavorable organization.
He also noted the 13 percent who were polled saying that suicide bombing or other violence against civilians is often, sometimes or rarely justified to defend Islam from its enemies. In Pew’s breakdown, those saying often polled at one percent, sometimes at seven percent and rarely at five percent. About eight in 10, or 81 percent, said it was never justified.
King told the hearing that the 13 percent translates to 357,500 Muslim Americans who believe killing civilians in the name of Islam is justified in some cases.
“These numbers are startling and expose a dangerous disconnect between a number of Muslim-Americans and the democratic values cherished by Western nations,” he said, according to his prepared remarks.
According to a press release issued on Monday by King, both U.S. and U.K. researchers said King is the first member of Congress to testify before a Parliamentary hearing in Britain
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63360.html#ixzz1XqJ47tY0
King praised the United Kingdom’s government for its work on stemming radicalization. | AP Photo
Rep. Peter King testified before a British Parliamentary committee on Tuesday, defending his three congressional hearings on Muslim-American radicalization against “mindless criticism” and saying he will not be stopped by political correctness.
The New York Republican appeared before the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee inquiry entitled “Roots of Violent Radicalisation,” presenting his findings from the three hearings he has held on radicalization within the Muslim-American community as the House Committee on Homeland Security chairman.
He told the Parliamentary hearing he “would not back down to political correctness” and will continue to tackle what he called a “dangerous problem,” according to a copy of his testimony provided to POLITICO by his office.
“Undoubtedly, Congressional investigation of Muslim-American radicalization is the logical response to the unquestionable fact that homegrown radicalization is part of Al Qaeda’s strategy to continue attacking the United States and its allies,” King said. “I would not back down to political correctness.”
King said his hearings — despite the “mindless criticism” they received — successfully opened up discussion about Muslim radicalization in the U.S.
King also praised the United Kingdom’s government for its work on stemming Muslim radicalization, noting that its “Prevent” strategy “offers a candid assessment of the problem and a model for effectively addressing and countering this problem.” The Prevent strategy is one part of the UK’s Home Office counterterrorism program, and focuses on preventative measures to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.
King told the hearing he is “concerned that within the United States, political correctness has prevented many from sufficiently acknowledging and tackling this dangerous problem” and said studying homegrown terrorism must remain of the highest priority for both the U.S. and UK.
“While I have no doubt that the Committee’s radicalization hearings have had a significant and beneficial impact in fostering an honest dialogue about the growing issue of radicalization within the United States, I remain concerned that this problem is far from resolved,” King said, according to his prepared remarks.
King cited a recent Pew poll finding that 5 percent of Muslim Americans have a very or somewhat favorable view of Al Qaeda and 11 percent have a somewhat unfavorable view. King said in his testimony that with 2.75 million Muslim Americans, this 16 percent means there are 440,000 people who view Al Qaeda as only a somewhat unfavorable organization.
He also noted the 13 percent who were polled saying that suicide bombing or other violence against civilians is often, sometimes or rarely justified to defend Islam from its enemies. In Pew’s breakdown, those saying often polled at one percent, sometimes at seven percent and rarely at five percent. About eight in 10, or 81 percent, said it was never justified.
King told the hearing that the 13 percent translates to 357,500 Muslim Americans who believe killing civilians in the name of Islam is justified in some cases.
“These numbers are startling and expose a dangerous disconnect between a number of Muslim-Americans and the democratic values cherished by Western nations,” he said, according to his prepared remarks.
According to a press release issued on Monday by King, both U.S. and U.K. researchers said King is the first member of Congress to testify before a Parliamentary hearing in Britain
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63360.html#ixzz1XqJ47tY0