Jesse Arm on Michigan Democrats' Islamism Problem

About this episode

The episode discusses the rise of Islamism within the Michigan Democratic party and its implications for American democracy.

Something has been happening in Michigan politics that deserves the attention of everyone who cares about the health of American democracy. And, as they so often are, the Jews are at the center of events. Taking root in Michigan is a specific and serious ideological threat—Islamism—that is gaining influence inside the Democratic party. This is a story about what happens when that influence is unnamed, accommodated, and finally normalized. And it is a story with major national implications. Muslim Americans serve in the U.S. military, teach in schools, build businesses, raise families, and love this country. Presumably, most Muslim citizens of America see their futures as bound up with the future of this republic, with no sympathy for those who would undermine it. But a radical Islamic political ideology has taken hold in specific institutions, among them the Michigan Democratic party. In March of this year, a Hizballah-inspired attacker drove a truck into the largest Reform synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, when over a hundred children were inside. Two weeks later, the Michigan Democrats held their statewide convention, and the incumbent Jewish regent of the University of…

People in this episode

Guest: Jesse Arm

Topics covered

• Islamism
• Michigan politics
• Democratic party
• Jewish community
• American democracy
• radical ideology

Keywords

• Islamism
• Michigan Democrats
• Hizballah
• Jewish community
• American democracy
• political ideology
• radicalism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Michigan Democratic party, Hizballah, University of Michigan

Places: West Bloomfield, Michigan, Michigan, United States

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