Florida: Democrats keep sharia alive for Muslims, defeat foreign law bill (updated)

via Florida American Law for American Courts Bill Stymied By Procedural Votes in State Senate – WatchdogWire – Florida. h/t Jerry Gordon

The minority Democrats effectively killed the Florida version of American Law for American Courts on its third try in as many years in the final days of the 2013 Legislature in Tallahassee. SB 58, Acceptance of Foreign Law in Certain Cases, was defeated on a procedural vote by the minority Senate Democrats: 25 Republicans to 14 Democrats. 27 votes were required to reach the required two-thirds margin to use the House version which passed the Florida House on April 18th, 79 Republicans to 39 Democrats. One Republican Senator Ms. Nancy Detert from Venice was absent from the floor for the vote while a Democrat who originally supported the vote requested release from a promise to vote for the House version after enormous pressure was brought on the Senator by the Democrat caucus. That fractious activity was witnessed by the House sponsor of HB 351, Rep. Larry Metz. Consideration of the House ALAC version in the Florida Senate lost by two critical votes.

SB 58 sponsor, Sen. Alan Hays, Republican of Umatilla had a list of more than 19 cases involving foreign law that had been appealed in Florida courts.

Senate Rules Committee Chair John Thrasher of Republican of St. Augustine was reported by a Miami Herald Naked Politics blog as saying Thursday evening that SB58 was “effectively dead”.

The final day of the session, the Senate version SB 58 was not called up at the option of the bill’s sponsor Sen. Hays as it would have required a unanimous procedural vote. If the Senate version had passed on a procedural vote on May 3rd it would have faced a daunting prospect with a required 2/3rds vote to bring up the Senate bill and a further 2/3rds vote to roll it to third reading on same day. That was mooted by the decision not to proceed in the Senate on the final day of the 2013 session.

Whether because of a technicality as some allege or intimidation, the Senate leadership failed to address approval in the Senate Rules Committee, the final step in the hearing process that would have facilitated a successful floor vote on a simple majority basis. As a result of not being scheduled for a hearing in the Rules Committee, the procedural vote was required to approve the House version that failed by a two vote margin to pass. The House leadership had required only two committee approvals prior to.

We were warned two months ago that the Republicans did not have the super majority the party had in the 2012 Session when ALAC was poised to pass, but for a disagreement between outgoing former Senate President Mike Haridopolos and the Senate Sponsor of ALAC in Florida, Sen. Alan Hays. It is doubtful that a fourth try in 2014 will eventuate as it is an election year.

The Senate version, SB58 had been approved by three Committees but had languished in the Senate Rules Committee since April 9th until it was withdrawn from Judiciary just prior to yesterday’s debate on the bill. A groundswell of grass roots support for ALAC was launched in a campaign directed at the Florid a Senate leaders who received thousands of emails and phone calls to bring the measure up for a floor vote.

Among those grass roots organizations supporting passage of ALAC in Florida were Act! for America, Christian Family Coalition and the Florida Family Association. The measure had been opposed by the Anti-Defamation League, National Council of Jewish Women, and Florida bar association sections on international and family law. The opposition cabal included Muslim Brotherhood front groups, CAIR, United Voices for America and Engage USA who accused the measure of discriminating against Muslims and Sharia Islamic law when the bills never mentioned either and nor was there was a blanket ban on foreign law. Jewish groups like the ADL and NCJW who opposed SB58 misinformed Jewish Floridians that ALAC would threaten recognition of Jewish domestic law. These groups had entre to media outlets that assisted in conveying their objections in a classic disinformation campaign. They were definitively rebutted by the arguments of Rabbi Jonathan Hausman, Esq. and corroborated by an Israeli women’s legal rights expert at Tel Aviv University, Prof. Daphna Hacker.

While opposition groups may gloat about this legislative bollix, it was more of the usual legislative politics that resulted in failure of ALAC to pass on its third try in the 2013 legislative session in Tallahassee.

Our commendation to both Sen. Hays and Rep. Metz for their dogged determination endeavoring to pass ALAC in Florida.

Florida was/is a key base for al Qaeda, the 9/11 attackers and their Saudi logistical support teams. Not to mention Hamas/CAIR.

Update: Ex-CAIR and pro-sharia Muslim gloats, with blatant lies, after punking Florida politicians:

It’s all about Islamic sharia law for Muslims like Ahmed Bedier. When he says his community will fight back, he means it in a very literal sense. Sadly, for the Americans who are asleep or afraid now and the elected officials who continually fail to do their duty to protect Americans and uphold their oath, it will be your children and your children’s children who will be fighting Muslims in the future.

 

Florida: Muslim letter to editor says anti-Sharia law is needed

via Anti-Sharia law needed – Letters to the Editor – MiamiHerald.com.

Re Laila Abdelaziz’s April 24 article, Legislature weighs anti-Sharia law we don’t need: As a Muslim, I would like to disagree with her views about Sharia law being banned in Florida. We do need to ban this law. Sharia law belongs to those countries where there is no democracy, human rights, individual freedom and no rule of law. We willfully came to this country. We cannot bring our own laws and rules and regulations and expect that they will be implemented as we wish.

We are here because the U.S. Constitution protects our freedom and liberty regardless of our race or religion. We know that rule of law will prevail and we will not be victimized by unscrupulous tyrants and anti-democratic rulers. Let’s not redefine freedom.

Cemal Kami Muren, Key Biscayne

Cemal and others can get involved. Read this link to Help bring SB58 American Law for American Courts up for Senate vote

HERE IS THE INFORMATION FOR  CONTACTING  FLORIDA SENATE  LEADERS BY PHONE AND EMAIL

Senate President
Senator Don Gaetz
District Offices: (850) 897-5747
(850) 747-5856
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5001
gaetz.don.web@flsenate.gov

Senate Majority Leader
Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto
District Office: (239) 338-2570
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5030
Benacquisto.Lizbeth.web@flsenate.gov

Senate Rues Committee Chairman
Senator John Thrasher
District Office: (904) 287-4222
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5006
thrasher.john.web@flsenate.gov

FBI records say Sarasota Saudis who fled home had “many connections” to individuals tied to 9/11

via FBI records say Sarasota Saudis who fled home had “many connections” to individuals tied to 9/11  | Broward Bulldog.

A Saudi family who “fled” their Sarasota area home weeks before September 11th had “many connections” to “individuals associated with the terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001,” according to newly released FBI records.

The information runs counter to previous FBI statements. It also adds to concern raised by official investigations but never fully explored, that the full truth about Saudi Arabia and the 9/11 attacks has not yet been told.

One partially declassified document, marked “secret,” lists three of those individuals and ties them to the Venice, Florida flight school where suicide hijackers Mohamed Atta and Marwan al-Shehhi trained. Accomplice Ziad Jarrah took flying lessons at another school a block away.

Atta and al-Shehhi were at the controls of the jetliners that slammed into the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center, killing nearly 3,000 people. Jarrah was the hijack-pilot of United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in a field in rural Pennsylvania.

The names, addresses and dates of birth of the three individuals tied to the flight school were blanked out before the records were released to BrowardBulldog.org amid ongoing Freedom of Information Act litigation.

National security and other reasons are cited for numerous additional deletions scattered across the 31 released pages. Four more pages were withheld in their entirety.

The records cast new light on one of the remaining unresolved mysteries regarding Florida’s many connections to the 9/11 attacks: what went on before the attacks at 4224 Escondito Circle, the home of Abdulaziz al-Hijji and his family before the attacks.

The documents are the first released by the FBI about its once-secret probe in Sarasota. Information contained in the documents flatly contradicts prior statements by FBI agents in Miami and Tampa who have said the investigation found no evidence connecting the al-Hijjis to the hijackers or the 9/11 plot.

Former Florida Senator Bob Graham, co-chair of Congress’s Joint Inquiry into the attacks a decade ago, has said the FBI did not disclose the existence of the Sarasota investigation to Congress or the 9/11 Commission.

The records also show for the first time that Graham’s former colleague, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., queried Attorney General Eric Holder and FBI Director Robert Mueller about the Sarasota investigation six days after its existence was disclosed in a story published simultaneously by BrowardBulldog.org and The Miami Herald on September 8, 2011.

The story told how concerned residents in the gated community of Prestancia tipped the FBI after the attacks to the al-Hijjis’ sudden departure in late August 2001. The family left behind three cars, clothes, furniture, diapers, toys, food and other items.

It also reported that a counterterrorism officer and Prestancia’s former administrator, Larry Berberich, said an analysis of gatehouse security records – log books and snapshots of license tags – had determined that vehicles either driven by or carrying several of the future hijackers had visited the al-Hijji home.

Phone records revealed similar, though indirect, ties to the hijackers, said the counterterrorism officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

In contrast, the newly released FBI records include a pair of two-page reports, written in response to the story, that reiterate the bureau’s public position that its investigation turned up nothing.

One report, written on stationery of the Justice Department’s 9/11 prosecution unit, notes “the FBI appears not to have obtained the vehicle entry records of the gated community, given the lack of connection to the hijackers.”

But the counterterrorism source, who has personal knowledge of the matter, called that assertion “not true.”

The Escondito Circle home where al-Hijji lived with his wife, Anoud, and their small children was owned by her parents, Esam and Deborah Ghazzawi. Esam Ghazzawi was an advisor to Prince Fahd bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, nephew of King Fahd. Prince Fahd, a prominent racehorse owner, died in July 2001 at age 46.

 Much more, read it all at BrowardBulldog.org.

Florida: Help bring SB58 American Law for American Courts up for Senate vote

Muslims are aggressively fighting for sharia law in Florida.

OPERATION PASS IT – Seeks Florida Senate approval of SB58 American Law for American Courts

OPERATION PASS IT is a major push to URGE  Florida Senate Leadership  with  phone calls and emails requesting  them  to bring  SB58, Application of Foreign Laws in Certain Cases,   before the full Senate for  a hearing  and passage before the close of the current 2013 legislative session in Tallahassee.
WHY THIS IS NEEDED:   SB58 HAS NOT BEEN SCHEDULED this week in Tallahassee by the Florida Senate Rules Committee.  This despite House approval of this important legislation on April 18, 2013   which Gov. Rick Scott approves and would be poised  to sign it into Law  should the  companion  legislation pass the Senate.
Here are the facts:
1. The Senate Rules Committee agenda has been set.
2.  SB58  has already passed three  Senate committees.
3. Senate  President  Don Gaetz can have the bill pulled from the Rules Committee and taken to the full Senate.

You are respectfully requesting  the Senate President  do just that since the Rules Committee is not scheduled to meet again in the 2013 Legislative session after this week’s  scheduled meeting.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:  PLEASE  MAKE CALLS  AND SEND EMAILS  TO FLORIDA SENATE LEADERS AT BOTH THEIR SENATE AND  DISTRICT OFFICES URGING THEM TO  BRING  SB58 UP FOR A SENATE VOTE:
“PLEASE MAKE SURE SB58, APPLICATION OF  FOREIGN LAW IN CERTAIN CASES,   IS HEARD AND VOTED ON THE FLOOR OF THE SENATE BEFORE THIS LEGISLATIVE SESSION ENDS.”
WHY THIS LEGISLATION IS NEEDED: House Sponsor of companion BILL  HB351, Rep. Larry Metz, in his message issued following approval by the Florida House on April 18, 2013 said:

This bill makes protection of fundamental constitutional rights the gold standard for deciding any request to apply foreign law. If a request to apply foreign law is denied, the parties would be free to litigate their disputes under Florida law.

HERE IS THE INFORMATION FOR  CONTACTING  FLORIDA SENATE  LEADERS BY PHONE AND EMAIL

Senate President
Senator Don Gaetz
District Offices: (850) 897-5747
(850) 747-5856
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5001
gaetz.don.web@flsenate.gov

Senate Majority Leader
Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto
District Office: (239) 338-2570
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5030
Benacquisto.Lizbeth.web@flsenate.gov

Senate Rues Committee Chairman
Senator John Thrasher
District Office: (904) 287-4222
Tallahassee Office: (850) 487-5006
thrasher.john.web@flsenate.gov

IF YOU HAVE ONLY TIME TO MAKE A CALL OR SEND MAIL CONSIDER ADDRESSING IT TO SENATE PRESIDENT GAETZ

PLEASE SHARE THIS MESSAGE WITH ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES.

Updates:

• The Florida Senate ALAC Bill will be heard and voted on before the 2013 Session Ends
• Israeli Family Law Expert Confirms Florida American Law for American Courts Legislation Doesn’t Threaten Jewish Domestic Law

Florida: So-called ‘anti-Shariah’ bill passes House

The media can’t even hide their disdain, much like Obama when he loses. Just check out the title. via TALLAHASSEE: Abortion, ‘anti-Shariah’ bills pass House, but fate uncertain in Senate – Florida – MiamiHerald.com.

House lawmakers also approved a measure that requires that Florida law trump foreign law in family law court. The bill, HB 351, would apply to all foreign laws, though critics say it is targeting Islamic law, called Shariah.

Supporters have yet to cite a case where the change in law is needed. Sponsor Rep. Larry Metz, R-Yalaha, has described the bill as a preventive measure.

The same bill passed the House last year but not the Senate.

They could just check the Florida dropdown above and find examples:

• Florida judge dismisses case in which he permitted Islamic law but says sharia court rulings binding
• Florida judge orders Muslims to follow sharia law, against their will
• Florida judge issues opinion, confirms Islamic sharia law in U.S. courts
• Appeals court rules Islamic SHARIA law is OK in FLORIDA civil case
• Bahraini bank buying “Shariah-compliant” real estate in…Boynton Beach, Florida
• Florida’s Amendment 8 would allow taxpayer money to mosques, Islamic schools
• Florida: Muslim family enforced sharia law on their own daughter
• Florida: Muslim terror suspect’s family threatens lawyers, who promptly quit
• Inside CAIR’s Muslim-only, gender-segregated “civil liberties” lecture
• Florida: DOJ Secretly Drops Terrorism Charges In Miami Taliban Case

Background:

• Why American Law for American Courts is Needed

• Palm Beach Post rejects rebuttal to pro-sharia, Florida foreign law editorial

• Florida: Bill banning sharia law in certain cases passes Senate

• Florida: Senate committee clears bill banning some aspects of foreign law

If you prevent those who espouse sharia from entering the country, it will have less likelihood of arising in court rooms.

 

“Brit” flew to Florida to have sex with underage girl, raise children as sex slaves

They left out the “Asian” part. via Brit Wanted To Raise Sex Slaves, Say US Police. h/t thereligionofpeace.com

A British man has been arrested by police in Florida who claim he flew to the US to have sex with an underage girl and then raise their children as sex slaves.

Shuhel Mahboob Ali allegedly made contact via the internet with an undercover investigator from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office in January.

He is said to have told the agent of his plans.

“As part of the relationship, the suspect allegedly wanted to impregnate the victim, whereupon he would be able to groom the children to be abused by the suspect from the time of birth,” a police statement said.

The police said the 39-year-old travelled from London last Saturday and was detained as he went to meet the young girl.

Ali is currently in the custody of the US Marshal’s service in Orlando, facing a charge of attempting to persuade a minor to engage in sexual activity.

If convicted, Ali faces life in prison with a minimum sentence of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000 (£163,000).

Endless examples at #RapeJihad.

Why American Law for American Courts is Needed

Thanks to Jerry Gordon at The Iconoclast where you can read the complete article.

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Why American Law for American Courts is Needed

American Law for American Courts (ALAC) is ground breaking legislation seeking to ensure that courts have the requisite instructions to protect individual rights guaranteed in both State and Federal Constitutions. It is non-discriminatory and does not contain an outright ban on foreign law. Nor is Islamic Sharia law even mentioned. It seeks to provide protection to those most vulnerable in family law litigation, women and children. ALAC has been enacted in four states: Arizona, Kansas, Louisiana and Tennessee. It is currently pending in Alabama, Florida, Oklahoma and Texas.

…

Evidence of why ALAC is needed

So why is ALAC needed in Florida and elsewhere? Let’s look at some evidence.

The Washington, DC–based Center for Security Policy in a 2011 report, Shariah Law and American Courts: An Assessment of State Appellate Court Cases, found 50 cases involving Sharia law in more than 23 states. At the trial court level 15 cases found Sharia to be applicable; at the Appellate Court Level, 12. Four of those cases were in Florida. Let’s look at some illustrative examples.

…

Florida: A graphic example is a case not included in the CSP study of Florida cases, that of Rifqa Bary.

Four years ago, a petit teenager seeking religious freedom huddled with her guardian ad litem in an Orlando Circuit Courtroom. Presiding Judge Daniel Dawson was in a quandary over whether he had jurisdiction despite concerns for her safety. Her name was Rifqa Bary. A native of Sri Lanka, she was seeking a basic freedom, the right to choose her faith by converting from Islam to Christianity. A right guaranteed under the State of Florida and US Constitutions, as well as Article 18 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Miss Bary had run away from her home in Columbus, Ohio seeking sanctuary in Florida. Her parents had demanded access to her and that she return to their belief community for counseling. This despite the fact that they and their daughter were illegal immigrants in this country. Miss Bary’s life was threatened in her country of origin because of her change in faith. She had been physically abused in her home. She was being treated for uterine cancer. Despite all of these daunting vicissitudes Miss Bary would complete her high school studies near the top of her class. Yet, the Florida Circuit Court did not believe it had the authority to rule in the matter except to remand Ms. Bary to the custody of the Juvenile Court in Franklin County, Ohio.

In an Iconoclast post we noted the challenging circumstances and the innovative solution propounded by Bary’s legal team at Ohio hearings in November 2009:

The petition before the court is for dependency, because Rifqa fears being sent home to her family. Her fears reflect a history of abuse, of being taken back to Sri Lanka and the distinct possibility of her being fatally punished under Sharia law for her apostasy as a Muslim who converted to Christianity. If the dependency petition filing is approved then Rifqa would become a ward (dependent) of the State of Ohio. She would then be automatically eligible for a fast track to obtain a Green Card under US immigration rules, regardless of the immigration status of her parents.

Her parents, Mohammed and Aysha have stayed beyond the limits of their 2005 Visa. They are here illegally under US immigration rules. Further, they have not complied with several court orders in Florida to produce their visas and passports. These facts – and not the family’s tax problems – are evidence of her parents’ unlawful behavior. If anything her parents’ tax problems make it more likely they would return immediately to Sri Lanka if the Ohio court ordered Rifqa returned. She is obviously afraid of being taken back there. Her parents therefore do not fear a US ICE order to leave America.

In August 2010, the Franklin County, Ohio Juvenile Court Judge Mary Goodrich ruled in favor of Ms. Bary’s dependency. A local Ohio news report cited Judge Goodrich’s stipulation:

“It’s not in the girl’s best interest to return her to her native Sri Lanka. Bary is (also) an illegal immigrant. The ruling allows her attorneys to file for a special immigration status to allow her to stay in the U.S. while she continues medical treatment following recent surgery for uterine cancer.”

Noted author, psychoanalyst and feminist Phyllis Chesler wrote this about the Franklin County Ohio Juvenile Court decision:

Thus, this case shows America at its best: A system that is capable of non-racism, a system that bears no hatred towards foreign aliens. This case is about legally rescuing a juvenile from serious harm at home and also honoring a very young girl’s right, no matter what her skin color or immigration status might be, to practice the religion of her choice.

The Rifqa Bary matter was not resolved under Florida family law. It clearly demonstrates why SB58 is needed to protect the individual rights of parties in such litigation.

There are those who argue that Florida SB58 – application of foreign law in certain cases – is unnecessary and duplicative of existing laws. Further, they suggest that the judiciary has the requisite knowledge to rule in such complicated family law and custody matters. We have heard arguments presented by Florida family and international law experts and Senators in prior hearings on SB58 that Florida Courts should recognize foreign customs regarding family law. That the failure to do so would hamper international trade in Florida. Muslim advocacy witnesses from Emerge USA at hearings on SB58 have even presented novel theories that English common law, exempted under Title 2 of SB58, discriminated against persons by virtue their faiths, sex or race. According to Rabbi Hausman these claims are false. See: Hausman: Jewish Domestic Law is Not Threatened by American Law for American Courts.

Rabbi Jonathan Hausman noted why SB58 is the answer:

The United States has a Constitution under which the government functions, and the Bill of Rights which protects basic human rights and freedoms – rights derived from the Almighty according to the secular foundational documents of these United States – freedom of speech, freedom of worship and freedom of assembly. The key question in this debate is; does foreign law as a legal system act in consonance with the Constitutional legal principles so cherished by and supported by over two centuries of American case law or does it stand for a diminution of the rights of many segments of our population? SB58 is the answer to this question. It is one of the surest methods to protect our Constitutional legal system.

Rifqa Bary was guaranteed those rights in an Ohio Courtroom, not in Florida where her matter originated. Her case amply demonstrates why SB58 should be enacted into Florida Law.

Also see Jerry Gordon’s collection of interviews, The West Speaks.

Palm Beach Post rejects rebuttal to pro-sharia, Florida foreign law editorial

Read it here thanks to Jerry Gordon at New English Review.

Florida ALAC Bill Advances in Senate Hearing with Assist from Rabbi Hausman 

…

At the conclusion of public testimony, Chair Ms. Sobel asked Sen. Hays for his comments.  He promptly read Rabbi Jonathan Hausman’s Iconoclast article we published rebutting a SunSentinel op ed by a trio of authors, including  two of the witnesses in yesterday’s hearing, Messrs. Barkey and Osorio. Watch the testimony and Sen. Hays’ recital of Rabbi Hausman’s prior article beginning at the 64 minute mark in the video of yesterday’s Florida Senate Committee proceedings.  The vote on SB58 was split with 5 for and 4 against granting approval. One Republican Senator, Miguel Diaz de la Portilla voted against the bill, while one Democrat, Sen.  Geraldine Thompson voted for the measure.  Sen. Diaz de la Portilla had submitted an Amendment to SB58 that he promptly withdrew upon presentation. SB58 now moves to the Florida Rules Committee for a hearing, the last stop prior before a Senate floor vote before the current session in Tallahassee ends in early May. Hopefully the Florida ALAC bill will pass on its third consideration by the Florida Legislature and be enacted into law by Gov. Rick Scott.

Rabbi Hausman had prepared a rebuttal to an article on Florida SB 58 that appeared in today’s Palm Beach Post, only to have it rejected upon submission by the paper’s editorial page editor for publication. We are publishing it here.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Neither International Trade or Jewish Domestic Law are Threatened by American Law for American Courts

By Rabbi Jonathan Hausman, Esq.

The comments cited in the Palm Beach Post article, “Bill banning Shariah law in Florida family cases passes Senate panel”, regarding Florida Senate Bill 58 are clearly incorrect in their assertions.  David Barkey of the Anti-Defamation League and Ms. Linda Geller Schwartz, of the National Council of Jewish Women wrongly suggest that SB58, which deals with the application of foreign law in certain state court cases, would undermine Florida’s international trade relations “as a center for trade with Israel and other nations” and “serve as an incentive for them to take their business elsewhere”. They also claim that “the bill would have a negative impact on Jewish divorces, called “gets,” and could trouble the state’s relationship with Israel. Under Jewish law, only a man can grant a divorce to a woman.” These suggestions are entirely incorrect as a matter of law.

To begin with, it should be pointed out that neither Mr. Barkey or Ms. Schwartz are properly credentialed to opine on Jewish religious law regarding domestic matters such divorce, pre-nuptial agreements or child custody.

What the public needs to understand is simply that the objective of SB58 is to ensure that Florida’s state courts will not apply any foreign law or foreign legal doctrine if the application of that foreign law or foreign legal doctrine would result in the violation of a party’s Constitutional Rights.  It is incorrect to characterize the bill as a blanket ban on foreign law.  Further, nowhere in this measure is Sharia even mentioned. The key question in this debate is whether Florida’s courts should possibly diminish the rights and protections of often vulnerable parties, particularly women and children, by deferring to specific points of foreign law that conflict with our Constitutional legal system. The supporters of SB58 believe that Florida’s courts should uphold the rights and protections granted by the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights without exception.

The above was not been lost on the Members of the Florida Senate Committee on Children, Families and Elder Affairs, who approved SB58 at their April 8th hearing in Tallahassee.

Let me state my qualifications.

My name is Rabbi Jonathan Hausman.  I am spiritual leader at Ahavath Torah Congregation in Stoughton, Massachusetts.  I have a BA in Judaic Studies, MA in International Affairs concentrating on the Middle East (both degrees from The George Washington University), JD from Emory University (licensed to practice in the State of Connecticut and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania), and my Rabbinic degree from Kollel Lomdei Torah of The Tifereth Israel Rabbinical Yeshiva.  I spent a great deal of time living and studying in the Middle East having lived and worked in Israel and studied at The American University of Cairo. I am the author of Halacha, Sharia and the Religious Acceptance of Constitutional Governance, New English Review, October 2009.

Check out NER’s Twitter feed @ner_iconoclast.

FL: Keith Ellison Keynoting Group Run by Terror Lawyer

via Keith Ellison Headlines Group Run by Terror Lawyer

Last year’s annual event for Emerge-USA was a disaster, losing keynote speaker Debbie Wasserman Schultz last minute over criticism leveled against her for helping to raise money for an organization whose leadership actively supports terror-related groups and individuals targeting the U.S. and Israel. Now, Emerge is taking no chances and will be holding a banquet featuring a Congressman (and fellow traveler) who is not as shy about his Islamist support, Keith Ellison.

On Saturday, April 20, Emerge will be sponsoring a “benefit dinner” with United States Representative Keith Ellison as the featured speaker. A colorful flyer advertising the event – complete with a big picture of Ellison – is currently found on the homepage of Emerge’s official website. As stated on the flyer, the contact for the event is Rasha Mubarak, who has held the position of Central Florida Regional Field Coordinator for Emerge since October 2011.

Inspiring a new generation of what?

The other guy in the flyer is a CAIR leader who infiltrated the NYPD by way of their chaplain program as we noted here, here and here.

Mubarak is a fervent Palestinian activist. In January 2009, she organized a march in Orlando to condemn Israel for waging a war against Hamas in Gaza. During the march, there were repeated chants of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” This chant is a Hamas slogan, whose meaning is the destruction of the entire state of Israel. At another anti-Israel demonstration Mubarak organized this past November, she herself questioned Israel’s current right to exist. She stated, “Israel has a right to exist, but not as they presently do…”

Emerge’s Tampa-area Regional Field Coordinator is Laila Abdelaziz. Not unlike her counterpart Mubarak, Abdelaziz is obsessed with the Jewish state. In January 2010, during a town hall meeting for Barack Obama, she denounced Israel in a question she posed to the President. “[W]hy have we not condemned Israel and Egypt’s human rights violations against the occupied Palestinian people, and yet we continue supporting them financially with billions of dollars from our tax dollars?” she belligerently asked.

In November 2012, when Israel invaded Gaza, in order to stop Hamas from continuing to target her citizens with rockets – over 2000 rockets in less than one year – Abdelaziz tweeted, “Don’t worry ya Gaza, we’re working hard for you in Florida.”

It is not unusual for Keith Ellison – a former member of Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam – to accept a speaking engagement from a radical Muslim organization, such as Emerge. He has been a regular at events sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), two groups the U.S. Justice Department has labeled co-conspirators in the raising of millions of dollars for Hamas. He, as well, spoke at events sponsored by the Minnesota chapter of the Muslim American Society (MAS), at the same time the group was propagating material on its website calling for the murder of Jews.

Almost exactly one year previous to this upcoming April banquet, Emerge was going to hold a similar event featuring as its keynote speaker the head of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. After this author publicly called on her to cancel her speech and co-authored a piece criticizing her for involving herself with such a group, both Wasserman Schultz and U.S. Representative Alcee Hastings withdrew their participation.

Much evidence was put forward to show why no government official should allow himself/herself to be taken in by this organization. The evidence contained disturbing details about the main individual behind Emerge, Khurrum Wahid.

According to his bio found on Emerge-USA’s website, Wahid is “a founding member and current Vice-Chair” of the group. Wahid is also a South Florida criminal defense attorney and previously served as a legal advisor to Hamas-related CAIR. His list of terrorist clients include: Rafiq Abdus Sabir, who received a 25 year prison sentence for conspiring to provide material support to al-Qaeda; Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, who was given a life sentence for being a member of al-Qaeda and for plotting to assassinate President George W. Bush; and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leader Sami al-Arian, who is at present under house arrest in Northern Virginia.

Recently, Wahid represented Hafiz Muhammed Sher Ali Khan, who was convicted of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to the Pakistani Taliban for the express purpose of murdering American troops overseas. Even after the conviction, Wahid is still raising money for Khan on his law firm’s website.

None of this is strange, considering that, in 2011, Wahid himself was placed on a U.S. government terrorist watch list.

Continue reading at FrontPage Magazine.

For newer readers, search our archives for more on Ellison or start here – Keith Ellison for dummies.

Florida: Bill banning sharia law in certain cases passes Senate

Funny how the Palm Beach Post calls this a bill banning sharia law then goes on for several paragraphs with people whining about how it will negatively affect Jews. via Bill banning Shariah law in Florida family cases passes Senate… | www.palmbeachpost.com.

TALLAHASSEE — Florida lawmakers are poised to pass a controversial law banning courts from using foreign law, after a split Senate committee signed off on the measure.

The bill (SB 58) would ban courts or other administrative authorities form using religious or foreign law in deciding matters related to family law, including divorce and child custody. The House approved a similar measure last year but it died on the Senate floor.

The Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs Committee approved the bill by a 5-4 vote, with one Republican voting against it and one Democrat voting in favor, surprising opponents of the bill, who expected it to fail.

Critics, including the Florida Bar, the Anti-Defamation League, the ACLU of Florida and the National Council of Jewish Women, contend the bill would have a negative impact on Jewish divorces, called “gets,” and could trouble the state’s relationship with Israel. Under Jewish law, only a man can grant a divorce to a woman.

That violates Florida and federal constitutional protections, David Barkey, religious freedom counsel for the Florida Anti-Defamation League told the panel. And it would bar courts from recognizing any divorce settlements granted under Israeli or Jewish law, he said.

The bill would ban courts from basing a decision regarding family law cases on a foreign law that does not grant the parties the same constitutional rights and privileges guaranteed by the state or federal constitution. And it would ban courts from enforcing decisions, such as alimony or child custody, granted in foreign courts that are not the same as state law.

The measure does not apply to ecclesiastical matters or corporations, something Hays said is meant to protect churches and religious institutions.

As we noted several times it’s not an outright ban on any foreign law, simply protects the rights of American citizens regardless of their origin or religion.

Florida business boots Purple Heart veteran after Muslims complain about tattoo

Self-imposed sharia law in Florida. Why were Qatari soldiers training in the U.S. anyway? And why did this Florida woman give foreign Muslim soldiers preference over a U.S. citizen and veteran who risked his life to defend her way of life? via Disabled Purple Heart veteran, embarassed at local business. – Adventures of A Broken Soldier

I am a disabled combat veteran. I served in Iraq and worked in Afghanistan. I took an IED because my country asked me too, and I was injured by a suicide bomber in Afghanistan. I have a Purple Heart and an ARCOM with Valor. I fully expect to be treated differently when I am visiting another country – when I am in America I expect equality and toleration; but what I experienced today is something that I never would have thought I’d have to go through in my own country. The country I fought for!

I am a skydiver with around 300 jumps under my belt. I’ve done jumps from 30,000 feet, helicopters, hot air balloons, wingsuit skydives and so forth. So with that being said I travel around doing this sport quite a bit. Today was my second time at a dropzone called “Florida Skydiving Center / Skydive Lake Wales“.

Coincidentally there are soldiers from the country of Qatar being trained there.

The picture is of the tattoo I have. Here is the definition of said tattoo: “Kafir (Arabic: كافر‎ kāfir, plural كفّار kuffār) is an Arabic term used in an Islamic doctrinal sense, usually translated as “unbeliever,” “disbeliever,” or “infidel.” The term refers to a person who rejects God or who hides, denies, or covers the “truth.” The Muslim’s from Qatar saw that tattoo and complained to the dropzone. Once they did so I was called to the back office and asked to cover it up by the OWNER. Not that I would, but its 80 something degrees here today, and that would be an unreasonable request. After I told her that I had no pants to cover it up she told me that she has DUCT TAPE that I can use to cover it. I told the lady that I was not going to cover it up, as it was nothing more than a tattoo saying “I am not a Muslim”. After beating around the bush for a few minutes entertaining me while I was trying to convince her otherwise, she asked me to leave.

What kind of America do we live in where someone comes back from war; disabled and decorated… while serving overseas was called an “infidel” for over 2 years, and then get asked to leave an establishment because of a tattoo I have that says just that, because of a culture of people visiting our country, and an American Business with no ethical sense or a backbone for that matter.

I am honestly offended and embarrassed by how I was treated at skydive lake wales.

Please, send them your feelings on the subject. Here is their contact information.

http://www.floridaskydiving.com/

https://www.facebook.com/skydivinglakewales

Florida Skydiving Center
440 S Airport Rd, Lake Wales, FL
(863) 678-1003

LakeWalesSkydiving@gmail.com