Since he was selected as Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate earlier this week, there has been considerable chatter about the headache that Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) has caused. Among the latest causes for concern is a report from Friday detailing how Walz hosted an imam who celebrated the October 7 attacks against Israel and promoted a pro-Hitler website.
As Gabe Kaminsky of the Washington Examiner reported about Walz and Imam Asad Zaman of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota:
Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz, on at least five occasions as governor of Minnesota, hosted a Muslim cleric who celebrated Hamas‘s Oct. 7 attack last year on Israel and promoted a film popular among Neo-Nazis that glorifies Adolf Hitler, the Washington Examiner found.
The imam, Asad Zaman of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, joined other Muslim leaders in May 2023 for a meeting about mosque security with Walz’s gubernatorial office in Minnesota. Zaman also spoke at a May 2020 event to call for peaceful protests with the governor during the riots in Minnesota sparked after George Floyd’s death. In April 2019, the cleric delivered an invocation before Walz’s state address — just months after Zaman called for an end to a government shutdown at a press conference with Walz in January 2019.
Zaman, moreover, attended a May 2019 event that Walz hosted for Ramadan, social media posts show.
Walz’s ties to Zaman could serve as problematic baggage for the Minnesota governor as he campaigns with Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee. News of the ties also comes after a Washington Free Beacon report this week found Walz spoke at a 2019 event with an antisemitic scholar who has defended terrorism against Israel....
In recent years, Zaman has also appeared to equate Hamas committing terrorism to Israel defending itself. State records reviewed by the Washington Examiner show Walz’s administration has awarded over $100,000 in funding to MAS Minnesota.
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The Muslim American Society was once described by federal prosecutors as being “founded as the overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in the United States,” court records show. The MAS, which the United Arab Emirates designated as a terrorist group in 2014, came under fire in 2019 after a video surfaced online of children at an event held by its Philadelphia chapter calling for the murder of Jews.
“We will chop off their heads, and we will liberate the sorrowful and exalted Al-Aqsa Mosque,” two young girls said at the event, according to the Times of Israel.
Walz’s office and Minnesota’s Muslim American Society did not reply to requests for comment.
The report highlights plenty of examples of problematic social media posts made by Zaman.
On October 7, the very same day that Israel was attacked, Zaman shared a post to his Facebook page from the Muslim American Society. "MAS STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINIANS AGAINST ISRAELI ATTACKS," the post claimed, before ranting against "Israeli occupation" and "inhumane blockade of Gaza." The post made no mention of the 1,200 Israelis killed by Hamas terrorists, or of the torture, rape, and kidnapping that occurred.
The report also mentions Zaman using his Facebook to share a Hamas press release in 2016, as well as an anti-Israeli blog post from 2014 on "Israeli Atrocities in Palestine, The Real Terrorism in Palestine."
In 2015, Zaman shared a link to a pro-Hitler film "The Greatest Story Never Told," which is described as a "propaganda movie... released in 2013 and is a favorite among antisemites and QAnon conspiracy influencers, according to the Anti-Defamation League."
Zaman also took issue with Democratic lawmakers expressing their support for Israel after the attacks, including Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) and Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Chairman Ken Martin on October 10.
As Martin shared how he was "beyond heartbroken" as he had visited the Kfar Aza Kibbutz and knew of Israelis who had been "brutally killed or kidnapped," the imam still posted to ask if he had visited Gaza. He also railed against "apartheid Israel" with regards to how the "DFL cannot be joined at the hip to apartheid Israel and still hope to court the Muslim vote."
@RepKatiePorter. Do you also condemn Israel’s attacks on Palestinian civilians and children? Do you also stand with the Palestinian people? Do you also reaffirm the right of Palestinians to defend themselves?
— Imam Asad Zaman (@ImamAsadZaman) October 8, 2023
Ken. Did you visit Gaza? Did you visit any Palestinians living under apartheid in the West Bank?
— Imam Asad Zaman (@ImamAsadZaman) October 10, 2023
The DFL cannot be joined at the hip to apartheid Israel and still hope to court the Muslim vote.
When can we see a similar expression of grief over Palestinian children suffering?
Zaman has continued to post and repost anti-Israeli propaganda posts, including accusing our ally in the Middle East of "ethnic cleansing through genocide and purposeful starvation."
When it comes to Walz's social media posts from October 7, it's even more telling that his official account posted that "Minnesota condemns the horrific attacks on Israel by Hamas," despite his meetings with Zaman.
Minnesota condemns the horrific attacks on Israel by Hamas. On a holiday that should be spent peacefully with loved ones, my heart breaks for the victims of this terrible act of violence.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) October 7, 2023
Bonchie, in writing about these reported meetings for our sister site RedState, pointed out how Walz has the support of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), a member of the anti-Israel Squad, as well as soon to be former Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a Squad member who lost his primary in June.
Walz certainly seems to have brought baggage to the ticket, with one of the many trends about the governor being, "Walz Hosted Pro-Hitler Cleric."
Users have shared Kaminsky's report to suggest Walz wasn't even vetted.
Convinced more than ever that absolutely no vetting went on for VP candidate. https://t.co/4f9WTf03Nw
— PizzaCzar (@PizzaWanchovies) August 9, 2024
Was Walz vetted at all?????? https://t.co/9AGXGA64BC
— GayPatriot (@GayPatriot) August 9, 2024
Meanwhile, Harris bypassed Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) as her running mate in favor of Walz. While reports indicate concerns with how Shapiro handled his interview and that there were some misgivings about the governor leaving Pennsylvania, it can't be ignored that fellow Democrats have raised concerns about Shapiro being Jewish and his support for Israel, which speaks to the antisemitism of the party that includes pro-Hamas and anti-Israel folks in its base.