Anti-Muslim campaigns say losing strategy, says report

Dozens of candidates, almost exclusively Republicans, campaigned during this election cycle, labeling their opponents as threats to national security related to terrorism. But according to a new study, it will not help them win.

"It's a losing strategy," says the 51-page report. "Most of them are about to lose, if they have not already done so."

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the 2018 'Running on Hate' pre-election report, published by Muslim Advocates, a civil rights group based in Oakland, California, has nominated 80 candidates for federal, regional and local positions, who have expressed an anti-Muslim sentiment based on past advertisements and speeches. All but two are Republicans. A dozen of these candidates are expected to win in November.

"While many factors contribute to the election results, the vast majority of anti-Muslim campaigns have failed, even with clearly credible candidates and in places where President Trump is popular," the report said.

He analyzed media reports, election results and projections to identify anti-Muslim candidates and the likelihood of their election or re-election. It also included a survey conducted by Probolsky Research, a Republican polling firm that found that 58% of those surveyed had no impression of Muslims or a neutral opinion.

At least 40 Congressional candidates have conducted anti-Muslim campaigns, according to the report. Twenty-three of them went to the general election, although 13 were the incumbents.

Only one non-incumbent is expected to win next month: Mark Green of Tennessee has been named secretary of President Donald Trump's army, but has lost any regard to earlier comments on Muslims and transgender people. Green, who says in 2016 that the state would not tolerate "the teaching of the pillars of Islam" and "how to pray as a Muslim" is standing for the position of Representative Marsha Blackburn, GOP Senate candidate.

The Super PAC Congressional Fund for Leadership, aligned with House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) ran an ad for the Republican Georgian Karen Handel last year, connecting the Democratic Jon Ossoff to Al Jazeera, a media that the announcement accused of being a "spokesman for terrorists". Handel won this special election and Cook Political Report describes his district as a "lean Republican".

The FDS has gone further this year for representative Dave Brat, a vulnerable Republican in Virginia whose campaign against Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA official, is a flash point. From the FCF Spot of 30 seconds Spanberger said he taught "Terror High," which he describes as "a terrorist breeding ground".

Spanberger was a substitute teacher at the Saudi Islamic Academy in northern Virginia while she was waiting for the processing of her security clearance requests. Brat talked about it in the campaign, wondering what his opponent could still hide, since that role was missing from his resume.

But Muslim lawyers say Representative Duncan Hunter is leading the country's most anti-Muslim campaign. The Californian Republican has accused his Democratic opponent Christian Ammar Campa-Najjar of trying to infiltrate the federal government. In one a dHunter claims that his opponent has changed his name several times "to hide his family's ties to terrorism" and concludes that Campa-Najjar is a "security risk", before closing with a picture of Hunter wearing its military equipment.

The Brat campaign did not respond to a request for comment, but a spokesman for the Hunter campaign called the qualifier "anti-Muslim wrong".

"Congressman Hunter has never identified his opponent as a Muslim, and such reports completely ignore the fact that Congressman Hunter has approved another candidate for the San Diego County Congress, Omar Qudrat, who is a self-identified Muslim, "said Michael Harrison. a spokesman for Hunter.

Harrison added that Hunter did not approach his opponent's Palestinian heritage as "negative", but simply focused on the facts, including the involvement of Campa-Najjar's grandfather in the terrorist attacks of the Games. 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.

"Again, these facts are not disputed, even by our opponent, and those who vote in the 50th congressional district have the right to know all the facts and decide for themselves who will best represent them in Congress" said Harrison.

Even Neal Tapio, a state senator from South Dakota who finished last in a Republican primary for the state district, aired an anti-Muslim ad. His small budget accused the founder of a mosque in Sioux Falls – none of the congressional candidates – to dress up as a terrorist. the 41 second announcement Alleged that Mohamed Sharif "wears the same scarf as the Hamas fighters" and ends up asking: "Should we be concerned?"

"For years, a resilient and resilient anti-Muslim plot has been living on the sidelines of US politics with a Republican Party head-on: there is an impending Muslim threat to conquer the country both violently and unjustly. violent means, "says the report of Muslim Advocates." This fringe has had a modest electoral success for years, with several flag bearers in Congress and in the conference rooms, but the election of Donald Trump has placed the One of theirs to the White House for the very first time. "

The Trump candidate, after all, had pledged to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the United States and had hinted that President Barack Obama was a Muslim years before the mogul of the United States. real estate does not show up and becomes president. According to the report, the campaign and Trump's presidency emboldened "a new wave of anti-Muslim conspiracy theorists to run for national elections and at all levels of government, trying to capitalize on a deeply false premise: the fact that discrediting Muslims is a successful campaign strategy. "

Democrats Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota are on the verge of becoming the first Muslim women elected to Congress. According to the report, the two activists "were violently attacked" by anti-Muslim activists and the media. Tlaib was described as a "radical Islamist" and Omar was accused of marrying his brother for committing fraud with respect to immigration.

Scott Simpson, director of advocacy at the Muslim Advocates, told POLITICO that it was important that this rhetoric not be considered "crazy talk" because it could affect people's lives and lead to more attacks and discrimination against Muslims.

"We have to stop the bleeding. Every month, every month, there is something horrible: a mosque is attacked or there is a planned attack or there is a vicious hate crime, "Simpson said. "We really want it to stop. The only real precipitating factor in this situation is that the rhetoric has become so disordered, and we think it gives permission to sort out that small, hostile group of people to commit truly untold deeds. "

According to the poll in the report, a survey of 1,000 voters, 18% of respondents, said that Muslims were good people. But 7% have a negative view of Muslims in general, while 5% think they are good as long as they are not extremists. Two percent said their religion was false, one percent said that Muslims are different, one percent said they were terrorists and less than 0.5 percent said they should leave the country.

Seventy-one percent said it was inappropriate for candidates to speak negatively of Muslims during their campaigns. Fourteen percent said it was appropriate and 14 percent were unsure or refused to say it.

Only 8%, however, said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who speaks negatively about Muslims. Fifty-eight percent said they would be more likely to vote against this candidate, although this makes no difference to 17%.

While "candidates for the anti-Muslim plot fell flat in 2017 and 2018," the report concludes, "anti-Muslim candidates and conspiracies are now firmly anchored in US politics, especially in Republican circles."

"Despite the widespread rejection of these plots, candidates and resulting policies, anti-Muslim attacks, threats and discrimination continue," the document said. "While insightful candidates and elected officials will take note of the unpopularity of the reconciliation of these plots, others will not. Our research has already revealed that 11 elected officials are actively raising fanaticism before the elections of 2019 and 2020 and, although many of them have already suffered negative reactions and pressure for resignation, we do not do not know how they plan to go forward. "

The telephone and online survey has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.