[Want even more content from FPM? Sign up for FPM+ to unlock exclusive series, virtual town-halls with our authors, and more—now for just $3.99/month. Click here to sign up.]
The tireless Senator from Arkansas, Tom Cotton, continues his fight against the forces of jihadist darkness. He made news as co-sponsor — with Representative Claudia Tenney — of a bill, “Recognizing Judea and Samaria,” that requires the American government to use the toponyms “Judea” and “Samaria,” which have been in continuous use for 3500 years, instead of the place name “West Bank,” which was concocted by the Jordanians in 1950, in an attempt to replace the toponyms “Judea and Samaria” and thereby to efface what would make too obviously clear the Jewish connection to the land.
Now Senator Cotton, in another blow to the jihadists, has asked the IRS to investigate the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) for its ties to terrorism. CAIR, as many know, was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terrorism-financing trial. Its director, Nihad Awad expressed not horror, but delight, when he learned of the atrocities carried out by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
More on Senator Cotton’s request to the IRS to investigate CAIR can be found here: “US Sen. Tom Cotton Pushes IRS to Review CAIR’s Nonprofit Status, Citing Ties to Terrorist Groups,” by Corey Walker, Algemeiner, August 6, 2025:
“US Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to launch an investigation into the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), claiming the nonprofit advocacy group has longstanding ties to terrorist organizations including Hamas.
US Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to launch an investigation into the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), claiming the nonprofit advocacy group has longstanding ties to terrorist organizations including Hamas.
In a letter to IRS Commissioner Billy Long dated Aug. 4, Cotton asserted that CAIR, which is registered as a nonprofit charitable organization that purports to protect the rights of American Muslims, has “deep ties to terrorist organizations.” Cotton pointed to what he described as “substantial evidence” from past government exhibits and public statements by CAIR officials, including its founding connections and remarks by its current leadership.
“Recent news and longstanding evidence demonstrate CAIR’s ties to terrorist organizations, including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, and their activities,” Cotton wrote.
While Hamas is a US-designated terrorist organization, the Muslim Brotherhood has not been proscribed as such, although lawmakers in Congress recently introduced legislation to designate the global Islamist movement, which has been banned in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Austria.
In his letter, Cotton called on the IRS to conduct a full review of CAIR’s financial records, affiliations, and operations to determine whether the organization continues to meet the legal requirements of its tax-exempt status….
Were CAIR to lose its tax-exempt status, this would be a terrific blow to its finances, both because it would now have to pay tax, and because donations made to an organization after its tax-exempt status has been revoked are not tax-deductible for the donor. Furthermore, there is reputational damage to would-be donors: how many would want to be known for having donated to a group that has lost its tax-exempt status because of its ties to terrorism?
CAIR did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story but replied to Cotton on the X social media platform.
“Is that the best you’ve got, Tom? We figured your handlers would have given you something better to work worth, not debunked conspiracy theories and half-baked legal arguments,” CAIR posted. “Unlike [Cotton], our civil rights organization defends the Constitution, including its guarantees of free speech and religious freedom. Also, unlike Tom Cotton, we oppose injustice here and abroad, from hate crimes to terrorism to ethnic cleansing to genocide. That’s why we speak out against the ongoing genocide in Gaza and why we spoke out against attacks on civilians in Israel on Oct. 7th. Receipts below. This is called moral consistency, Tom. You should try it. Make sure to ask AIPAC first, though.”
AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is a prominent pro-Israel lobbying group in the US.
The childish sarcasm, the primitive cruelty, the sheer nastiness of CAIR’s reply posted on X no longer surprise. It’s what we have come to expect of such people as Nihad Awad and Ibrahim Hooper.
Let’s hope the IRS head, Billy Long, will do what Senator Cotton requests, and look into CAIR’s tax-exempt status in light of the organization’s ties to Hamas. After all, his agency depends on Congress for its funding. And Senator Cotton is the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, someone who carries weight. CAIR is, one hopes, in for a world of woe.
