- Democratic Rep. Andre Carson confirmed he met with Louis Farrakhan and Rep. Keith Ellison in 2015
- Ellison repeatedly claimed his relationship with Farrakhan, a notorious anti-Semite, ended before 2006
- Carson declined to rule out future meetings with Farrakhan, and Ellison has refused to confirm he was at the meeting
Democratic Indiana Rep. Andre Carson has confirmed that he took part in a private meeting with Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan and Democratic Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison.
Ellison, deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), claimed repeatedly that his relationship with Farrakhan ended well before he first ran for Congress in 2006. New reporting has shown that Ellison repeatedly attended meetings with Farrakhan while in Congress, including privately visiting Farrakhan in his Washington, D.C., hotel room in 2015.
Farrakhan is a notorious anti-Semite who has praised Hitler, said white people “deserve to die” and repeatedly claimed Jews are “satanic.” The Nation of Islam’s doctrine teaches that white people are inherently inferior and were created in an experiment by a black scientist named Yakub.
Carson confirmed his attendance at the meeting in an interview with Indianapolis Star columnist Tim Swarens, who published Carson’s comments in a column Tuesday.
Carson disputed a Wall Street Journal report that he attended a 2013 dinner with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Farrakhan, but declined to rule out attending future meetings with Farrakhan.
Farrakhan first revealed the 2015 hotel visit in a December 2016 Facebook video, after Ellison claimed he had no relationship with the hate group leader. Farrakhan said that he had a friendly conversation with the two Democratic congressmen.
The Washington Post cited the 2015 meeting in awarding Ellison “Four Pinnochios” — reserved for “whoppers” — for falsely claiming that his relationship with Farrakhan ended in 2006. The Post cited The Daily Caller’s reporting in debunking Ellison’s claim.
To date, Ellison has yet to confirm his presence at the 2015 meeting. Spokespersons for both Ellison and Carson have not returned The Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment. (RELATED: Third-Highest House Democrat Shared Stage With Farrakhan, Now Refuses To Denounce)
Ellison admitted to the Post during his 2006 campaign that he worked with the Nation of Islam for approximately 18 months ahead of Farrakhan’s 1995 Million Man March. Ellison has repeatedly and inaccurately assured the public that his relationship with Farrakhan ended before 2006.
Ellison’s close ties to Farrakhan and other extremist figures became a political flashpoint when he ran for DNC chair following the 2016 election. (RELATED: Anti-Defamation League Says Keith Ellison Should Be Disqualified From Running DNC)
Liberal billionaire Haim Saban, an influential Democratic donor, said at the time that Ellison is “clearly an anti-Semite” and said it ” would be a disaster for the relationship between the Jewish community and the Democratic Party” if Ellison won DNC chair.
Tom Perez’s first act after winning DNC chair was to appoint Ellison his number two.
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