Dean has invoked the same argument when it comes to his work in support of the MEK, the Iranian militant group. Dean and other luminaries from across the political spectrum have been paid vast sums of money by the group — as much as $20,000 for a 10-minute speech — to appear at events pushing the Obama administration to remove the MEK from the official list of terrorist organizations.
Kennedy wouldn’t tell Foreign Policy’s Josh Rogin whether or not he was paid to speak at the rally to remove the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) from the State Department list of foreign terror organizations. But asked by ThinkProgress, Kennedy replied that he had been paid $25,000…The MEK has been on the U.S. list of terror groups since 1997, which prevents members from traveling to or raising funds in the U.S….
If you have been wondering who among us Iranian-Americans supports the MEK and its delisting as a”foreign terror organization,”wonder no more. Meet The Great Lonnell and his 200 friends from his church in Staten Island, who attended a 1,000-1,500 person rally in DC on Friday.”We are here representing on behalf of the Iranian community,”The Great Lonnell told Foreign Policy’s The Cable.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, “should ignore their [MEK] P.R. campaign. Mujahedeen Khalq is not only irrelevant to the cause of Iran’s democratic activists, but a totalitarian cult that will come back to haunt us.” Rubin argues that what is “most disturbing” about the MEK/MKO/PMOI is the way the leaders, Massoud and Maryam Rajavi treats its members that reside in Iraq’s Camp Ashraf.
Those who have sold their advocacy for big bucks deserve shame; those who have done so for a meal or two maybe deserve our pity. Those who have gotten mixed up in the campaign through a crude belief that Iran is an enemy and the enemy of my enemy is my friend need to realize that being an enemy’s enemy does not make one a friend..Secretary of State should keep the windows closed and just pay attention to the terms of the law..
..many apparent non-Iranians came out as well, most wearing flags, headbands, and even yellow vests with images of the group’s leaders — Maryam and Massoud Rajavi — on the chest. Of this group, few seemed to have many details about the MEK, and instead pledged vague notions of support for human rights and democracy, often even getting the name of the MEK/MKO wrong…Some of the attendees had been bused and flown in at no personal cost, receiving transportation and in some cases lodging and meals.
Such comments would seemingly go against the MEK’s repeated claims to have transitioned from Islamo-Marxist cult into the non-violent champion of the free market it now styles itself as, but didn’t seem to phase anyone, including the conference’s organizer Ray Tanter, who insisted the attacks the MEK/MKO/PMOI has conducted inside Iran were simply “military activities” and didn’t count as terrorism.
… Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and former Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy were among those speaking in support of the Mujahedin-e Khalq. The midday crowd filled a a street outside the State Department for a rally with confetti and doves released into the air. The U.S. declared the group a terrorist body in 1997. But a court last year ordered the State Department to reconsider the designation. ..
… Mr Nafee-Issa said that”the Committee is working to collect a large number of facts that show the crimes of this organization and what caused the killings of civilians in Iraq since 1986 till 2003.”He added that”organized crime continued after 2003 as a result of political interference in the affairs of Iraq by creating sectarian strife.. Camp Ashraf, or as it is now known camp New Iraq, houses thousands of Iranian fighters of the MKO/MEK/PMOI …
Rally participants also included a number of non-Iranian-Americans. Several of them told RFE/RL they had little or no knowledge about the MKO.”We’ve come for Iranian people,”said one African-American.When asked whether he and his female companion received money to attend the rally, the woman first said yes, but then retracted her statement at the man’s behest..Western media have reported that former U.S. officials have received substantial financial contributions to speak at MKO events..