Source: Los Angeles Times

On July 5, 1999, the Los Angeles Times reported that the appointment of Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in Los Angeles, by House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt to a national counter-terrorism commission has come under attack by major Jewish organizations. Muslim Americans hail the appointment as a "sign that Washington is finally giving them a voice in policymaking." Al-Marayati looks forward to the position: "I hope to broaden the discussion on terrorism by looking at its root causes and enhance our effectiveness in combating this evil." David Lehrer, Los Angeles regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, decried the appointment: "If it's a panel on counter-terrorism, you ought to be examining what tactics the U.S. government should be taking rather than looking for reasons why someone should put a bomb on an airplane." The appointment has also drawn the criticism of the leading Jewish American voice in Washington, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, whose 55 members span the political spectrum. Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents, stated: "We support inclusion of Muslims and Arab Americans, but not someone who has the kinds of views he has on issues the commission is to address...We are raising questions about the appointment and think it is not a wise appointment." Critics claim that Al-Marayati has "likened supporters of Israel to Nazis, compared American revolutionaries to terrorists and sought to blame Israeli leaders for terrorist actions." Al-Marayati has also come under fire for seeing Hezbollah as a legitimate resistance to Jewish presence in Lebanon. The Zionist Organization of America has also opposed the appointment of Al-Marayati's wife, Laila, to a national commission on international religious freedom.