Note: Please see update below.
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery's desperate attempt to gin up controversy and milk the just-passed anniversary of 9/11 by employing a controversial ex-FBI agent to teach cops and prosecutors about Muslim extremism has taken a wacky turn.
John Guandolo, the ex-FBI agent who reportedly left the bureau after admitting to an inappropriate sexual relationship with a confidential informant according to several outlets, fired back in his blog today against the ACLU of Arizona and local Muslim groups that are calling on Montgomery to cancel a scheduled a September 19 training session, in which Guandolo is a featured participant.
Guandolo labeled many of the signers of a recently-published letter of complaint to the county attorney as being members of Hamas or the Muslim Brotherhood, and he suggested that the ACLU should be indicted for writing the letter.
In his blog, "Understanding the Threat," which is also the title of the MCAO's September 19 training to be held at Tempe hotel, Guandolo writes the following:
It is interesting that a letter signed by the ACLU leadership along with a Hamas official (dba "CAIR") and several Muslim Brotherhood organizations would describe the work of UTT as "dangerous" while leaving the impression the work of the U.S. MB and Hamas is not.The ACLU should be reminded that Hamas is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) by the U.S. government. Aiding and Abetting, as well as materially supporting a terrorist organization is a federal felony. Hopefully, an indictment of the ACLU will be forthcoming.
Guandolo links to the federal statute making it a crime, punishable by up to 15 years, to provide "material support or resources" to individuals intending to carry out terror attacks.
How this would apply to signing a letter of protest to the county attorney, Guandolo does not explain.
Providing "material support or resources" is defined by statute, thus:
The term "material support or resources" means any property, tangible or intangible, or service, including currency or monetary instruments or financial securities, financial services, lodging, training, expert advice or assistance, safehouses, false documentation or identification, communications equipment, facilities, weapons, lethal substances, explosives, personnel (1 or more individuals who may be or include oneself), and transportation, except medicine or religious materials.
Alessandra Soler, executive director of the ACLU of Arizona, says that Guandolo's blog post essentially confirms her organization's criticism of the upcoming training.
"After this blog entry, how can MCAO continue to stand behind [Guandolo] and his beliefs?" asked Soler. "This blog entirely shows that Guandolo has no interest in distinguishing between terrorists and Muslims living in our community, which Montgomery has been claiming is his goal."
Well, because Montgomery's stated goal is far different from his real goal: i.e., getting some face time on Fox News national.
Guandolo also has asserted that the CIA director secretly is a convert to Islam, a claim that Montgomery attempted to feed some life into during his Wednesday press conference.
In other words, ladies and gentlemen, the circus is coming to town, and Montgomery has appointed himself ringmaster.
Update 2:00 p.m.:
Shortly after posting this blog item, I noticed that Guandolo had removed the post in question from his site.
Fortunately, I took a screenshot of it:
I have queried the MCAO and Guandolo for comment. If they respond, I will post what they have to say.
Update 3:45 p.m.:
No word from Guandolo, but Montgomery's spokesman Jerry Cobb emailed me the following response:
"We contacted him and requested he remove the post."
He did not say if the training session was still on.
Two thoughts: Guandolo is obviously prone to foot-in-mouth disease, and whatever Monty's paying this guy, it must be good enough jack for Guandolo to snap that post down tout de suite.
Update 5:23 p.m.:
Cobb has confirmed that the training will go forward as scheduled.
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