Despite CAIR leader’s support for Hamas attack, Gavin Newsom meets with the group

California governor Gavin Newsom (D.) met Thursday with​ the state’s Council on American-Islamic Relations ⁢chapter (CAIR) just‍ weeks after the group’s leader said‍ he was “happy⁣ to ​see” Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel, a ⁤comment that⁢ even prompted condemnation from the Biden White House.

Newsom, a potential presidential contender, hosted CAIR officials, the group said in a press release. The activists called on Newsom to push for a ceasefire in⁤ Gaza and urged him to ensure freedom of speech for anti-Israel protesters at California schools. The ⁣White House, which selected CAIR to serve on a task ‍force to combat anti-Semitism last year, distanced itself ⁣from the group in November after CAIR president Nihad Awad said he “was happy to see” Hamas fighters ⁣attack⁢ Israel on Oct. 7.

In the meeting with CAIR, Newsom provides ⁣a high-profile ⁤platform to an activist group with‌ longstanding ties to Hamas. Federal prosecutors named CAIR an “unindicted co-conspirator” of Hamas front groups in 2009. Awad in November claimed Israel “does not have a right to defend itself.”

The head of CAIR’s California chapter, Hussam Ayloush, praised Newsom after the meeting ​for providing a “platform to⁣ request the administration be proactive in ensuring the dignity of Palestinians.”

“In his tenure, Governor​ Newsom has paved the path as a champion⁤ for civil rights, and we urge him to continue to use his voice⁤ as the leader of Californians ⁤who overwhelmingly demand a ceasefire,” said Ayloush.

Ayloush, too, has downplayed Hamas’s attack on‌ Israel, the worst attack in the Jewish⁤ state’s history. He asserted ‌in a sermon at the ​Islamic Society of Corona-Norco in November that it was “a lie” that Hamas’s invasion of Israel was an “unprovoked attack,” the Washington ‍Free​ Beacon reported.

“If I⁢ hear that term again,​ I’ll go crazy,” Ayloush said. “Unprovoked​ in what dictionary?”

Newsom gave $200,000 in 2022 to the Islamic Society of Corona-Norco through California’s Nonprofit Security Grant program, awarded to⁣ religious institutions to help protect against terrorist ⁤attacks, the Free Beacon reported. Newsom’s office awarded $135,000 to CAIR’s California chapter as part of the program.

The administration awarded grants to other ‌mosques that cheered Hamas, including Sajjadia Islamic Society in Riverside, ‌Calif. In ⁣a sermon in November, pro-Iran cleric Hamza⁣ Sodagar said “Allah” sent “the rockets ⁣from Hamas or Hezbollah” ⁤to strike Israel.

Newsom’s office did not respond to a request for comment.