Rep. John Bennett, chair of the Counterterrorism Caucus of the Oklahoma Legislature, issued a second response to the criticism leveled by the Oklahoma chapter of Council on American-Islamic Relations to the seminar being sponsored by the caucus Friday on the floor of the House of Representatives.
By bringing pressure on CLEET, CAIR sought to preempt the daylong seminar entitled, “Iran, Hezbollah, and the Drug Cartels: Counterterrorism Considerations,” presented by experts at the CLEET-accredited Center for Security Policy.
A news release says CLEET is not a sponsor of the Counterterrorism Caucus and the seminar sponsored by the Counterterrorism Caucus is not a CLEET-sponsored seminar. Furthermore, CLEET had no role in selecting the speakers. Due to an oversight, the Counterterrorism Caucus sent out a Media Advisory that did not contain a Disclaimer but CLEET does not endorse the content of this seminar and any comments about the counterterrorism seminar should be directed to the Center for Security Policy, not to CLEET.
“This is an attack on free speech and an attempt to deny vital information to our law enforcement officers who are trying to protect the citizens of Oklahoma.” said Bennett, R-Sallisaw and Chairman of the Counterterrorism Caucus.
“Why would CAIR would want to attempt to prevent factual information about Iranian terrorists or the Mexican drug cartels from coming out? Does CAIR really want to stand up for Iranian terrorists or the drug cartels?”
In the interest of the safety of Oklahomans, the caucus feels it is crucial to go ahead with the seminar, Bennett said.
With nearly a century of combined experience as practitioners of US national security policy—including a former CIA case officer, an Assistant Secretary of Defense, and an Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Delta Force commander—the credentials and expertise of Clare Lopez, Frank Gaffney and Jerry Boykin, respectively, are appropriate as trainers for the topics to be discussed.
