WA 4th Congressional candidate Sessler says Muslims shouldn’t serve
Jerrod Sessler, who is running in Central Washington against Rep. Dan Newhouse, has received backlash for continuing to promote Islamophobic beliefs.
News Story by Mai Hoang | Cascade PBS
Congressional candidate Jerrod Sessler garnered criticism from the Muslim community and others after making comments that Muslims should not be in Congress.
In a recent interview with the Yakima Herald-Republic, Sessler said he would work with Muslims in Congress but felt they should not be there, and said a Muslim majority could create insecurity for the Constitution.
“There’s no way that a devout Muslim should be in Congress because they can’t take the oath of office,” Sessler told the Yakima Herald-Republic. “Their fundamental belief system is anti-American.”
Sessler is running for Congress against incumbent Rep. Dan Newhouse, a Republican who has held the seat for nearly a decade. Sessler has positioned himself as more conservative than Newhouse. He has received endorsements from the far right wing of the Republican party, including members of the Freedom Caucus.
Believes U.S. political system based on the Bible
Throughout both his primary and general election campaigns, Sessler highlighted his Christian views and his belief that the political system is based on Christian religious beliefs outlined in the Bible.
“With the Bible, there is unlimited history and unlimited precedence,” Sessler said in an June interview with Cascade PBS leading up to the August primary.
In contrast, he has consistently maintained that “radical Islam” runs counter to the freedoms afforded to citizens in the U.S. Constitution.
Muslim Americans “live in a country where they are allowed to exist even though their religion, in fact, disagrees with the tenets of this Constitution,” Sessler said in the Cascade PBS interview.
Sessler, however, has tried to soften his views by saying that he would work cooperatively with Muslims in Congress and is willing to talk to Muslims in the 4th District. He believes it’s possible to be civil with Muslims but also to point out the “problematic” aspects of the religion.
Sessler’s views about Muslims not received well
Still, Sessler’s comments were not received well. In a written statement, the Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations noted that Muslims, like other Americans, have the right to run for office, including Congress.
“American Muslim candidates, like all others, are committed to upholding the U.S. Constitution and serving the best interests of their communities,” CAIR Washington executive director Imraan Siddiqi said in a press release. “Attempts to discredit them based on their faith are not only baseless but an affront to the core values of religious freedom and democracy that define this nation. Such rhetoric is a dangerous attack on the principles that unite our pluralistic society and has no place in public discourse.”
According to CAIR-WA, 235 Muslims serve at the local, state and federal levels across the United States. In Congress, just four Muslims have served, including three still in office: André Carson of Indiana, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. All three are Democrats.
