President Obama on Friday voiced strong support for Huma Abedin, saying the top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has been "nothing less than extraordinary in representing our country and the democratic values that we hold dear."

Obama praised Abedin during remarks at a White House iftar dinner to mark the end of the fasting during the Ramadan holiday observed by Muslims. Abedin has been subject to unproven accusations by some House Republicans, including Michelle Bachmann (Minn.), that she is part of a conspiracy by the Muslim Brotherhood to infiltrate the top reaches of the U.S. government.

The president called Abedin an "American patriot" and added that the public owes her "a debt of gratitude" because she is "an example of what we need in this country – more public servants with her sense of decency, her grace and her generosity of spirit."

In his remarks, Obama said diversity "makes us Americans," but he warned that tolerance for such diversity is "threatened."

He cited the recent shooting at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin, in which six people were killed by a gunman who eventually shot himself.

"Tonight, our prayers, in particular, are with our friends and fellow Americans in the Sikh community," Obama said. "We mourn those who were senselessly murdered and injured in their place of worship. . .So tonight, we declare with one voice that such violence has no place in the United States of America. The attack on Americans of any faith is an attack on the freedom of all Americans. No American should ever have to fear for their safety in their place of worship. And every American has the right to practice their faith both openly and freely, and as they choose."

Washington Post, 10 August 2012

See also Huffington Post, 10 August 2012

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The Huffington Post examines the cases of Mohamed Elibiary, Mohamed Magid and Dalia Mogahed.

Elibiary, who serves as an advisor for the Department of Homeland Security, says of Michele Bachmann and her colleagues:

"They feel like there's no consequences to what they're doing, no negativity, and they just wrap themselves in the flag like they're the only uber-patriots out there. There are real peoples' lives that are affected. This is a witch hunt to just make sure that we ruin every Muslim who is serving in any capacity in the government, period."

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I can't say I'm generally an admirer of John McCain but the statement he delivered on the floor of the US Senate today in defence of Hillary Clinton's aide Huma Abedin against the paranoid accusations of Michele Bachmann and her colleagues really is worth reading.

Here's an excerpt:

Recently, it has been alleged that Huma, a Muslim American, is part of a nefarious conspiracy to harm the United States by unduly influencing U.S. foreign policy at the Department of State in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist causes. On June 13, five members of Congress wrote to the Deputy Inspector General of the Department of State, demanding that he begin an investigation into the possibility that Huma and other American officials are using their influence to promote the cause of the Muslim Brotherhood within the U.S. government. The information offered to support these serious allegations is based on a report, 'The Muslim Brotherhood in America,' produced by the Center for Security Policy.

To say that the accusations made in both documents are not substantiated by the evidence they offer is to be overly polite and diplomatic about it. It is far better, and more accurate, to talk straight: These allegations about Huma, and the report from which they are drawn, are nothing less than an unwarranted and unfounded attack on an honorable citizen, a dedicated American, and a loyal public servant.

The letter alleges that three members of Huma's family are 'connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations.' Never mind that one of those individuals, Huma's father, passed away two decades ago. The letter and the report offer not one instance of an action, a decision, or a public position that Huma has taken while at the State Department that would lend credence to the charge that she is promoting anti-American activities within our government. Nor does either document offer any evidence of a direct impact that Huma may have had on one of the U.S. policies with which the authors of the letter and the producers of the report find fault. These sinister accusations rest solely on a few unspecified and unsubstantiated associations of members of Huma's family, none of which have been shown to harm or threaten the United States in any way. These attacks on Huma have no logic, no basis, and no merit. And they need to stop now.

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