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San Francisco Chronicle – Oct. 10, 2006
Civic leaders condemn attack on
California Muslim candidate
By Gillian Flaccus
A powerful Republican Party operative who earlier this week accused a Muslim City Council candidate of supporting Islamic extremists on Thursday challenged the Syrian-born man to a debate on his views of Hezbollah and the Middle East.
The challenge from former state GOP chairman Shawn Steel came the same day that more than a half-dozen elected officials and civic and religious leaders rallied behind the candidate, Belal "Bill" Dalati, on the steps of City Hall.
A letter Steel wrote accusing Dalati of helping sponsor an anti-Israel rally and associating with "zany left wing groups" has circulated on the Internet since early this month. The letter was posted on OC Blog, a politically conservative site, by former state Sen. John Lewis, who is a consultant for Councilman Bob Hernandez, one of Dalati's opponents in the nonpartisan race. The post was titled "Something Scary in Anaheim."
On Thursday, Dalati's supporters gathered at City Hall to offer him support and condemn Steel's comments.
"We call on all Californians to reject attempts to spread fear of Islam and Muslims by falsely labeling Arab-American and Muslim-American candidates as extremists," said Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "It is disturbing to see a public official exploit the growing anti-Muslim feeling in our society." ….
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/10/12/state/n174105D68.DTL&type=politics
Los Angeles Times – October 13, 2006
Candidate is defended after 'extremist' labeling
Community leaders call the act by GOP figures a smear
job against the fellow Republican, an Arab American in O.C.
By Dave McKibben
Standing on the steps of City Hall on Thursday, local religious, civic and ethnic leaders rallied around an Arab American candidate for Anaheim City Council who was vilified last week by state Republican leaders as being anti-American and a supporter of extremist groups.
Bill Dalati, an insurance agent taking his first run at elective office, was joined by about a dozen supporters, most of them community leaders who called on politicians, candidates and their supporters to denounce what they called an attack that played to race and religion.
"We detest, we abhor the kind of elements that have been injected into this race," said Amin David, head of Los Amigos, an Anaheim-based Latino advocacy group. "It's disappointing that a person's faith and heritage are still an issue."
The allegations against Dalati, a moderate Republican, surfaced last week in a letter to local Republican leaders from former state Republican Party Chairman Shawn Steel and on various websites. One such posting was by former state Sen. John Lewis (R-Orange), a consultant for one of Dalati's opponents.
Steel told Anaheim voters that Dalati's ties to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, his support of a Democratic congresswoman and his involvement with a rally protesting the Israel-Lebanon conflict could make him unfit for public office.
Steel said he considered CAIR an extremist group. The largest Muslim civil rights group in the country, CAIR is widely viewed as mainstream and helps the FBI in combating terrorism. It enjoys the political support of figures such as Orange County Sheriff Michael S. Carona….
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-anaheim13oct13,1,7831319.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california
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