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by WES CLIMER
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Last year Texas Governor Greg Abbott took a bold and necessary step: designating the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as foreign terrorist organizations under Texas law. The rationale was simple and serious — these are groups with well-documented ties to anti-American ideology and support for violence, operating under the guise of social activism and civil rights.
Texas is leading. South Carolina should not fall behind.
Congressman Ralph Norman deserves credit for raising the alarm and calling on the General Assembly to act. He’s right. The safety of our citizens and the integrity of our values demand action. I have filed legislation that does just that, empowering the Governor of South Carolina with the authority to classify militant organizations as terrorist entities as Texas has done.
This is not about partisanship. It’s not about politics. It’s about taking threats seriously and responding with the seriousness they deserve.
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When President Donald Trump took steps at the federal level to begin designating the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliates as terrorist organizations, it was a clear-headed and courageous move rooted in national security, not rhetoric. He understood what too many in Washington still fail to grasp: America must never confuse tolerance with weakness.
The Muslim Brotherhood has a long and well-documented history of advancing radical ideology around the world. Intelligence agencies and international partners have acknowledged the group’s influence in promoting extremism. To pretend otherwise is to turn a blind eye to reality.
CAIR, while branding itself as a civil rights organization, has been repeatedly linked by the U.S. Department of Justice and others to individuals and efforts that support Hamas and other designated terrorist groups. These are not baseless accusations. They are facts supported by public records and court proceedings.
South Carolina should not wait for tragedy or federal foot-dragging to respond. We have the authority and the responsibility to protect our citizens from organizations that seek to undermine our institutions and way of life.
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Let me be clear: religious liberty is sacred. Violent radicalism cloaked in religious language is not.
The legislation I have introduced mirrors Texas’ approach. It will grant the Governor the authority to designate foreign-affiliated groups that promote violence or terrorist radicalism as terrorist organizations under state law. This empowers law enforcement to act, alerts the public to the threat and sends a clear signal that South Carolina does not tolerate threats to our security.
I’m grateful to Congressman Norman for his leadership on this issue. I’m proud to stand with President Trump in the broader effort to root out the kind of radical ideology that threatens peace at home and abroad.
South Carolina should not be a safe haven for groups that hate America, hate freedom and hate our values. The time to act is now.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Wes Climer is a candidate for the U.S. Congress. He represents the citizens of S.C. Senate District 15 in the S.C. General Assembly. He resides in Rock Hill with his wife and five children.
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6 comments
This is bullshit. Quit fearmongering. Or, if you’re going to do this, include groups that support Israel and its terrorism in Gaza and elsewhere.
Hate filled, red meat, posturing, that changes nothing and makes no one safer. This guy has your full attention, and all he can do is play on your fears. Climber indeed.
J Doe above is right! Any respect I might have had for Climer and RINO Ralphie Norman just went straight down the toilet. This bullshit should scare any liberty minded citizen, and greatly so. This is nothing more than government setting itself up to be in a position to attack any group it deems necessary to attack in the future.
It follows a an old and predictable GovCo pattern of operation.
First, create or identify a scarey bogeyman.
Second, demonize that bogeyman, or or other problem. Make sure that the public is adequately terrified, whether justified or not.
Third, introduce governmental solutions and ensure that that the public knows that government is THE solution.
This is exactly what was done following 9-11. Actually, the “solutions” had already been drafted and crafted BEFORE 9-11. All was ready to be rushed through Congress, passed, and signed into law. How else do you think so much was passed so quickly by them?
Think “Patriot Act” which increased domestic spying on US citizens, TSA with so much legalized groping and inconvenience, and much, much, more. These things are not temporary. They are permanent.
No Wes and Ralphie, not buying your bullshit. Now you need a scapegoat to scare the citizenry into supporting your venture to further infringe on our rights and freedom, probably to benefit AIPAC or their new state-level version. Who will be next, if you get this law? Democrats? People who dislike Jews? People who support Palestine? Gun owners?
Take your protective law idea and shove it where the Sun doesn’t shine.
Nothing worse than a young boomer. Muslims don’t believe christ is boiling in shit like another extremist group I could think of
Yep. The small hats are probably pushing this crap and they are the ones we best be watching.
Well why haven’t you addressed it while in the statehouse? Funny these people running for a higher up office are now bemoaning all thee issues they failed to address while being in office.