‘Borking’ the candidacy of Sami Merhi
Friday, March 24, 2006
By ALFRED DOBLIN
In 1987, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass, led the charge against Robert Bork,
President Reagan’s nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. Within an hour of Bork’s
nomination by Reagan, Kennedy took to the floor of the Senate and laid the
foundation for the candidate’s demise. Bork was toast faster than you can say,
“Harriet Miers.” Democrats launched a full-court press; Bork didn’t stand a
chance. Sami Merhi, a Lebanese-American, has not been nominated to the high
court. He’s a Democratic candidate for Passaic County freeholder. He’s been “Borked.”
On Saturday, he was the party’s nominee. Within two days, he was under attack,
not just from local politicians, but from Sen. Robert Menendez and Gov. Jon S.
Corzine.
Merhi’s troubles began in April of 2002 at a fundraiser for Rep. Bill Pascrell
Jr. The New York Times quoted Merhi saying, “I can’t see the comparison,”
referring to Palestinian suicide bombers and the Sept. 11 terrorists. His godson
was killed on Sept. 11. According to Merhi, he said more than was printed in the
article. At the fundraiser, he said Palestinian suicide bombers do not kill
thousands of people; they have not invaded the United States. There is no
comparison because Sept. 11 was personal to Merhi, not because there is an
acceptable rationale for Palestinian suicide bombers. On Wednesday, Merhi said,
“There is no justification for terrorism.”
Unfortunately, there is no recording of the fundraiser. Pascrell recalls the
event. “I was disappointed by his response,” he said. Pascrell said it was not
appropriate to bring up Sept. 11 or the Middle East conflict at a fundraiser.
But he backed up Merhi’s recollection of the event. At no point did Merhi
qualify any form of terrorism as justifiable.
What went wrong between Saturday and Monday?
Democratic leadership knew of Merhi’s 2002 speech, yet they supported him.
Pascrell said he doesn’t know who is behind the Merhi attacks, but clearly some
person or group is. A U.S. senator and the governor of New Jersey do not follow
county politics on an hourly basis.
Pascrell said he did not advocate for Merhi - Democratic leadership chose him
without his influence. While Democrats now are trying to toss Merhi from the
ticket, Pascrell remains firm in his support of his friend. It’s one of
Pascrell’s finest moments.
Too many state politicians have rushed to raise the American flag as they
denounce an Arab-American because of what he may have said four years ago. No
one took the time to talk to Merhi. That is inexcusable.
Pascrell said, “Merhi is a man of character.” Has Pascrell gone soft on
terrorism, too? New Jersey has a sad history of racial profiling. It is not
enough to acknowledge that blacks and Hispanics should be treated with dignity.
Arab-Americans are the easy targets after Sept. 11. And “terrorist” has replaced
“communist” as the most feared moniker in the 21st Century neo-McCarthy age. The
charge does not have to be proven. Just asserting it does equal damage.
Merhi said that when he was younger, his grandfather cherished three words: “We
the people.” He wanted to instill in his family the power of those words, of the
American dream. Merhi said, “I still believe in due process. I still believe
this is the only country where you can have a voice.”
In America, people are judged by words and deeds. In the absence of a
transcript, what was said at an April 2002 fundraiser remains murky. Four years
later, memories blur. But there is nothing in four year’s worth of Sami Merhi’s
history to suggest he supports or advocates any form of terrorism.
This weekend, Democratic county leadership is scheduled to discuss Merhi’s
candidacy. Rather than continue debate on what was said in 2002, local
leadership should find out what was said between Saturday and Monday - more
important, who did the talking. There is no place in government for men and
women who support terrorism. There also is no place in government for men and
women who play on the public’s paranoia to smear reputations.
Even Robert Bork would agree with that.
Alfred P. Doblin is the editorial page editor of the Herald News. Reach him at
doblin@northjersey.com
|
|
