Dem Congressman Calls for Hearing on 'Radicalization of Christians in America

Rep. Peter King's (R-N.Y.) House hearings exploring the potential radicalization of American Muslims continue to be highly contentious. During the latest meeting, a startling, new proposal that came from a Congressional Democrat is sure to raise eyebrows.

On Wednesday, as King continued his exploration of the important issue, Texas Congressman Al Green (D) offered up a bizarre suggestion -- that the federal government also hold a hearing on the "radicalization of Christianity."

NJ.com provides an overview of the controversial gathering:

...[this was] the fifth in a controversial series of hearings on the threat to U.S. security posed by Islamic radicalization first convened by King in March 2011. As chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, King insists it's his responsibility to investigate the threat. But critics including Democrats and some Muslim-American groups say King is on a McCarthy-esque witch hunt that runs counter to the Democratic ideals the 9/11 terrorists themselves were attacking.

King’s comments were consistent with the views of the three Muslim witnesses he had invited to testify.

Asra Nomani, a former Wall Street Journal reporter and author of “Standing Alone: An American Woman’s Struggle for the Soul of Islam,” testified that many non-Muslims were frustrated by the reluctance of Muslim-Americans to acknowledge the role that selective readings of the Koran can play in fostering terror.

See King's opening statement from the hearing, below:

As stated, not everyone present agreed with King's stance on the issue. Take, for instance, Green, the grandson of a Christian minister, who used his five-minute speech to claim that he opposes hearings that don't look at radicalization in a more general sense. In making this statement, the lawmaker made it clear that he believes the government should be looking at every faith and not just Islam.

"People who see the hearings and never hear about the hearing on the radicalization of Christianity have to ask themselves, ‘Why is this missing?’" Green said, according to Newser. "Why don’t we go to the next step and ask, how is that a blue-eyed, blonde-haired, white female in the United States of America can become radicalized to the point of wanting to do harm to this country? We don’t have that type of hearing."

"I do know what it feels like to look like a Muslim in the minds of some people and to be demeaned in a public venue. I look forward to the day that we’ll have that hearing that deals with the radicalization of Christians in America," he added, according to a transcript created by Raw Story.

Watch Green's five-minute testimony, below:

To this, King responded that Islam has a direct correlation to terrorism and that it is perfectly understandable why he and other members of Congress would express concern and investigate the issue.

"To deny that there’s any correlation between the Muslim faith and the biggest threat to this country today defies credulity," the Homeland Security chair said. "When they’re looking for the Russian mob, they go to Breighton Beach and Coney Island [Russian immigrant neighborhoods]. That’s just good police work."

Watch King also question some of his other witnesses, including Dr. Zuhdi Jasser:

In a special report released this month, the Council on American-Islamic Relations claims that King has done nothing to viably prove his theory that radicalization may be taking place (read the report here).

(H/T: Raw Story)