Analyze this “buffoonery?" Republican Pete King

“U.S. Rep. Peter T. King (R-NY), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, reaffirmed that, in March, the Committee will move forward with a series of hearings to examine the threat of Islamic radicalization. Last week, Ranking Member Bennie Thompson (D-MS) wrote Chairman King a letter asking that King, instead of focusing on al Qaeda’s efforts to radicalize and recruit within the Muslim-American community, examine extreme environmentalists and neo-Nazis. 

In his response, sent today, King wrote that “the Committee will continue to examine the threat of Islamic radicalization, and I will not allow political correctness to obscure a real and dangerous threat to the safety and security of the citizens of the United States.””

“So the focus of the hearings is on proving that American Muslim leaders have allegedly failed to cooperate with law enforcement officials in disrupting terror plots. That would seem to give folks an opening to make King look pretty silly, by asking: Can you please produce some law enforcement officials who will testify to this?”

“Pete King: No law enforcement officials will substantiate my claims about Muslims

By Greg Sargent

As you know, Pete King is planning hearings into the radicalization of Muslim communities. He's now opened up a bit to The New York Times on what the focus of those hearings will be, and unless I'm missing something, he's put himself in a real box:

Representative Peter T. King, Republican of New York, said he would rely on Muslims to make his case that American Muslim leaders have failed to cooperate with law enforcement officials in the effort to disrupt terrorist plots -- a claim that was rebutted in recent reports by counterterrorism experts and in a forum on Monday.

So the focus of the hearings is on proving that American Muslim leaders have allegedly failed to cooperate with law enforcement officials in disrupting terror plots. That would seem to give folks an opening to make King look pretty silly, by asking: Can you please produce some law enforcement officials who will testify to this?

Oh, wait, King is refusing to do that. Rather than ask law enforcement officials to testify, he's going to rely on the testimony of Arabs and Muslims to verify it:

"I believe it will have more of an impact on the American people if they see people who are of the Muslim faith and Arab descent testifying," Mr. King said.

So, why no effort to solicit the testimony of law enforcement professionals? Well, The Times story gives us the answer to that question in this priceless detail from King, buried way at the bottom:

He said he did not expect to call any of the local law enforcement or counterintelligence experts who he said had told him repeatedly that noncooperation by American Muslims is a "significant issue." He says they will say these things privately, but not in public.

It's not easy to wrap one's head around such buffoonery, but let's try. Is King really telling us that law enforcement officials believe that noncooperation by American Muslims with efforts to halt terrorism plots is a "significant issue," but that they won't say so out loud, even though this noncooperation is presumably putting American lives at risk?

I've asked a spokesman for King if he's lined up anyone -- Arabs, Muslims, law enforcement officials, you name it -- who is willing to back up his claims, and I'll update you if I hear back. King should be pressed to prove his assertions. I really hope folks don't let King skate with any more of this kind of nonsense. 

By Greg Sargent  | February 8, 2011; 2:08 PM ET”