Dem Congressman: Louis Farrakhan Is ‘An Outstanding Human Being’

A Democratic congressman recently praised Louis Farrakhan as “an outstanding human being” despite Farrakhan’s record of rabidly anti-Semitic statements.

Rep. Danny Duffy (D-IL) told The Daily Caller that it was perfectly fine that Barack Obama took a photo with Farrakhan in 2005.

“I regard him as an outstanding human being who commands a following of individuals who are learned and articulate and he plays a big role in the lives of thousands and thousands and thousands and thousands of people,” Duffy said.

When asked about Farrakhan’s anti-Semitism, Duffy claimed “that many people in politics have a history of inflammatory comments.”

Here are some of the many anti-Semitic statements spewed by Farrakhan:

· “It is now becoming apparent that there were many Israelis and Zionist Jews in key roles in the 9/11 attacks. Israelis had foreknowledge of the attacks…we know that many Jews received a text message not to come to work on September 11.”

· “These false Jews promote the filth of Hollywood that is seeding the American people and the people of the world and bringing you down in moral strength. It’s the wicked Jews, the false Jews, that are promoting lesbianism, homosexuality. It’s the wicked Jews, false Jews, that make it a crime for you to preach the word of God, then they call you homophobic.”

· “Jews who owned the homes, the apartments and stores in the black community, we considered them bloodsuckers because they took from our community and built their community but didn’t offer anything back to our community.”

· “I believe that for the small numbers of Jewish people in the United States, they exercise a tremendous amount of influence on the affairs of government…yes, they exercise extraordinary control, and black people will never be free in this country until they are free of that kind of control.”

Farrakhan has also praised Adolf Hitler as “a very great man,” railed against whites as “the race of devils” and formed a partnership with the Church of Scientology cult.

Duffy’s comments come after the release of a 2005 photo showing Obama smiling with Farrakhan at a Congressional Black Caucus meeting; the photographer claimed that he hid the photo in order to improve Obama’s chances at the presidency. There are also photos from 2006 showing Reps. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Barbara Lee (D-CA), among others, embracing Farrakhan.

Additionally, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), was a member of Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam and defended him for years before cutting ties from the Nation of Islam in 2002. However, according to the Wall Street Journal Ellison attended a dinner with Farrakhan that was hosted by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and visited Farrakhan in 2016.

In 2015, progressive icon Linda Sarsour attended Farrakhan’s #JusticeOrElse rally and then gushed about Farrakhan afterward.

“The brother does not age,” Sarsour said. “God bless him.”

Tablet’s Yair Rosenberg noted that “Republican elected officials from Donald Trump on down have rightly faced heavy criticism from Democrats over their ties to and defenses of bigoted hate groups and individuals.”

“Whether Democrats will hold their own official, Rep. Davis, to the same standard remains to be seen,” Rosenberg wrote. “Thus far, all 20 other members of the Congressional Black Caucus who served in Congress at the time of the Farrakhan meeting have declined to comment on it or condemn the man himself.”