Imam Rauf and the Art of the Possible

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf (currently on very important "outreach" business on behalf of Foggy Bottom) would like you to think that the mosque controversy has been whipped up by Republicans as a means of capitalizing on looming elections. From the New York Post:

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- The imam spearheading a proposed Islamic center near the site of the Sept. 11 attacks in New York believes the fierce opposition is closely linked to the U.S. elections in November, according to comments published Monday.

"There is no doubt that the election season has had a major impact upon the nature of the discourse," Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf was quoted by the Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National in an interview as part of his State Department-funded trip in the Gulf.

Rauf did not cite any particular political race possibly tied to the protests, but many political figures have aligned themselves with the opposition to the $100 million project that includes a mosque and Islamic cultural center...

Wrong, again, "one state 'solution'" dude. A mosque in the 9/11 neighbourhood would have been controversial even without elections (but aren't you clever to try to frame it as a Republican election ploy/conspiracy instead of what it is--a discussion about the (in)appropriateness of situating your honking big triumphalist edifice there).