Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (R) continues to spout the paranoid fantasies of right-wing conservatives, by insisting that parts of Europe have become Muslim-dominated “no-go zones”. The concept that entire European cities have become Islamic enclaves ruled by Sharia law is patently absurd. However, FOX News irresponsibly gave a platform to the addle-brained theory of “no-go zones” when they invited “terrorism expert” Steven Emerson on their news channel to give credence to the idea. In a statement that the network has since retracted as false, Emerson proclaimed,
In Britain, it’s not just no-go zones, there are actual cities like Birmingham that are totally Muslim, where non-Muslims just simply don’t go in.
Of course, Bobby Jindal missed the retraction, because as a potential GOP presidential candidate, peddling fear is more important than spreading truth. He may have to compete with Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee and Rand Paul for the Duck Dynasty vote after all. Being more afraid of Muslims than the next guy, could be his chief selling point, since nothing he is doing as governor of Louisiana seems to be working. A 2014 poll showed that Jindal was strongly disliked in his own state, and that he would even lose a presidential match-up to Democrat Hillary Clinton by a 48-44 margin.
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
That Jindal would repeat the “no-go zone” myth after Emerson himself retracted his own lie, says a lot about Jindal’s inability to come to terms with the truth. Ideology is more important than reason for Jindal, as he hopes to court Republican voters for a national contest. FOX News and Jindal should be ashamed that they still regard Emerson as a “terrorism expert”. Emerson’s credibility should have been dismissed when he declared that the Oklahoma City bombing had a “Middle Eastern trait” to it, because it was “meant to inflict as many casualties as possible.” Emerson added,
Oklahoma City, I can tell you, is probably considered one of the largest centers of Islamic radical activity outside the Middle East.
Jindal refuses to back down on his insistence that the no-go zones in Europe are real because he has nothing else to run on. Whether Jindal is promoting the “no-go zone” mythology out of sheer ignorance or because of intentional deception matters little. Neither explanation is very flattering for the Louisiana governor. The truth has been a no-go zone for Jindal for some time. Six years ago in his response to Barack Obama’s first State of the Union address, Jindal made up a story to cast himself as a hero fighting government red tape to rescue people during Hurricane Katrina. Sure it was a bold-faced lie, but an understandable one. After all, Jindal wants to be president some day, for Pete’s sake.
Keith Brekhus is a progressive American who currently resides in Red Lodge, Montana. He is co-host for the Liberal Fix radio show. He holds a Master’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Missouri. In 2002, he ran for Congress as a Green Party candidate in the state of Missouri. In 2014, he worked as a field organizer for Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick’s successful re-election bid in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District. He can be followed on Twitter @keithbrekhus or on Facebook.
