“Let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are. The writ of our Founders must endure.” President Obama
How about them apples? I know he's a secret Kenyan Nazi Maoist Muslim and all, but I hope this goes a long way towards settling this issue on the right note. Glenn Greenwald reacts:
This is one of the most impressive and commendable things Obama has done since being inaugurated... What makes this particularly commendable is there is virtually no political gain to be had from doing it, and substantial political risk. Polls shows overwhelming opposition to the mosque nationwide (close to 70% opposed), and that's true even in New York, where an extraordinary "50% of Democrats, 74% of Republicans, and 52% of 'non-enrolled' voters, don't want to see the mosque built."
Shame on all those people regardless of party.
It was as clear a demonstration of President Obama's character and courage as we've seen in quite some time.
Oh, and look who's back and proving that the tea party is inclusive and tolerant:
Mark Williams, a controversial tea party political movement supporter, said the center would be used for “terrorists to worship their monkey god.”
Monkey god, eh? Good one. If Mark Williams wasn't such a flaming ignoramus, he'd know that the Muslim God is the same god as the Christian and Jewish God. And the intolerance continues from the wingnut commenters at Hot Air.
And by the way, while not technically a mosque, an Islamic center called Masjid Manhattan has been located three blocks from the WTC since 1970. It's a shame they have to include this on their website:
DISCLAIMER:
Please be advised that we are by no means affiliated with any other organization trying to build anything new in the area of downtown Manhattan.
Obviously they don't want fire-eating wingnuts with misspelled signs screeching outside their facility.