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John Bolton Embraces His Pamela Geller And Robert Spencer Problem

The manifesto of right-wing terrorist Anders Breivik, who attacked targets in Norway in July killing nearly 100 people, contained numerous citations to Islamophobic bloggers and other so-called experts on Islamic terrorism here in the United States. The references included “counterjihad” bloggers Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer, who received a combined 174 citations from Breivik (Geller and Spencer also feature prominently in CAP’s latest report on the Islamophobia network in the U.S., “Fear, Inc.”).

ThinkProgress’ Eli Clifton subsequently noted that former Bush administration official and prominent war hawk John Bolton — who is currently considering a run for president — has a “Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer problem.” Indeed, Bolton has deep connections to Geller. He even wrote the foreward to Geller and Spencer’s 2010 book, The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration’s War on America. The book contains language eerily similar to Breivik’s manifesto.

Bolton kept quiet about his links to Geller and Spencer after Breivik’s attack. But now, it appears he’s fully embracing them. Geller announced today that Bolton will be speaking at her “9/11 Freedom Rally: Stand Against Ground Zero Mosque”:

Honor our war dead on September 11th at West Broadway and Park Place at our 911 Freedom Rally. Stand for freedom. Join us, Robert Spencer and me at West Broadway and Park Place and protest this cultural obscenity at our 911 Freedom Rally. Remember last year?

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Speakers include U. S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton

ThinkProgress asked Bolton staffer Christine Samuelian if the former U.N. ambassador is concerned about continuing to associate with Geller and Spencer given their influence on Breivik. Samuelian confirmed that Bolton is not attending the upcoming anti-mosque event in person and will instead send a recorded video, but she has yet to respond as to whether Bolton has any concerns about Geller and Spencer. (HT: Justin Elliott)