The specter of the late commie-hunting congressman from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, will always be with us. It was summoned up recently to describe Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn. She and four other Republican members of Congress wrote the State Department inspector general to investigate a longtime senior aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The aide’s family, her letter pointed out, has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

The response to these charges was mostly outrage. Sen. John McCain defended the aide as “a dedicated American.” There is no evidence that he is incorrect. Yet, the larger and more important issue is being obscured here. Many in government and the media don’t even want to face the possibility that infiltration is a tactic of Islamic extremists who repeatedly say they want to destroy not only Israel but the “Great Satan” America. Such objectives should be taken seriously, given their violent history.