American Muslim Judge Nominee Faces Islamophobic Smear Campaign
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – American Muslim judicial nominee Adeel Mangi is the target of an Islamophobic ad campaign launched by the influential right-wing lobbying group, the Judicial Crisis Network (JCN).
Mangi, the first Muslim appeals court judge in the US, is accused in the campaign of being a "radical" and an "anti-Semite," with alleged ties to terrorists.
The JCN's ads claim Mangi advised an organization that teaches students "to hate Israel, to hate America, and to support global terrorism," and include video footage of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center overlaid with a headline about Mangi.
Republicans previously attacked Mangi during his December hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, demanding he share his personal views on the 9/11 attack.
In response to the attacks, the largest Muslim civil rights organization in the US publicly criticized the senators for their behavior towards Mangi.
Despite the accusations, the JCN has not provided any evidence to support the claim that Mangi is an anti-Semite.
Emily Hampsten, a spokesperson for Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, stated that the JCN's ads are part of a broader, coordinated effort by conservative groups to derail Mangi's nomination.
A report by the Democratic Policy and Communication Committee reveals that the Judicial Crisis Network spends substantial sums, including millions of dollars in dark money, to promote Republican judicial nominees and oppose Democratic nominees at the federal level.
