Keith Ellison, the Minnesota congressman who is seeking the chairmanship the Democratic National Committee, is beginning to feel the heat for his past profession of radical views and associations with extremists. At the New York Times, Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman report that “some Democrats” are concerned about Ellison’s defense of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has made anti-Semitic and anti-white pronouncements for decades.
As the Times notes, Ellison defended Farrakhan in the 1990s, saying he was not an anti-Semite in a 1995 Minneapolis newspaper column that was first reported in THE WEEKLY STANDARD by Scott W. Johnson. Ellison, a Muslim who no longer associates with the Nation of Islam, is also to the left of the Democratic party on issues related to Israel. Johnson recently detailed for TWS all of Ellison’s controversial positions and affinity for Farrakhan.
But here’s what happened when the Times reporters attempted to interview Ellison for their story (emphasis added):
It’s not just the Times. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Ellison is pushing back against accusations he has defended anti-Semites like Farrakhan:
Be sure to read Scott Johnson’s coverage in our pages of Ellison’s attempt to rewrite his own history.
