IS HIS NAME JOSE PADILLA OR ABDULLAH AL MUHUJIR? | 2002-06-15
The "American" caught planning a dirty bomb attack on the United States was born Jose Padilla in New York City. He changed his name when he converted to Islam.
So what is his real name? The media says his real name is Jose Padilla when they want to say that profiling by race and religion is evil. As Jose Padilla he is a Hispanic, so airports should continue to search white grandmothers just as carefully as they do Middle Easterners.
On the other hand, when it comes to immigration, his name is Abdullah al Muhajir. Liberals and respectable conservatives have been arguing that our open border with Mexico is no problem, because it is only Arab immigrants, not people of Hispanic origin, who are hostile to the United States.