Please Follow us on Gab, Minds, Telegram, Rumble, Gettr, Truth Social, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram
Just days after the U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing titled “Hidden in Plain Sight: Confronting the Muslim Brotherhood Network in America,” Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont attended an information session hosted with CAIR-Connecticut at the Bridgeport Islamic Community Center.
CAIR-CT itself announced the event. Chairman Farhan Memon directly asked Lamont whether Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute genocide. The governor declined the term, admitted he had not examined the matter under the applicable legal definition, and settled for calling the military campaign a “gross overreaction.” Discussion topics also included education, healthcare, property taxes, immigration, small business, and Connecticut’s relationship with Israel. Lamont then addressed the broader congregation after Friday prayers.
There is nothing wrong with Lamont meeting Muslim constituents or hearing from advocacy groups. The question is the pattern of access, the policy asks, and the timing.
On August 5, the Senate hearing examined allegations surrounding Muslim Brotherhood networks in the United States, including the "Red Green Alliance" with the Democratic Socialists of America.
CAIR was among the organizations discussed in testimony, along with historical evidence from the Holy Land Foundation case and related materials. CAIR is not a federally designated Foreign Terrorist Organization and denies the connections. However, Florida and Texas have taken formal steps to designate the group a terrorist organization at the state level.
Connecticut Senator Richard "Danang Dick" Blumenthal skipped the hearing, citing concerns that, "it could well be used as an anti-Muslim, Islamophobia kind of show trial."
Lamont appeared with the state chapter of CAIR just two days after the hearing.
This was not an isolated outreach stop for Lamont. CAIR-CT has been busy in Hartford.
In February 2026 it organized Muslim Advocacy Day at the State Capitol, pressing religious accommodation, education equity, civil-rights measures, and community inclusion.
In March it pushed amendments to HB 5328 on anti-Muslim bigotry and racism in schools.
That legislative track fed into the broader education bill that produced Public Act 26-1 / SB 298. Effective July 1, the State Board of Education must make curriculum materials available on Islamic and Arab studies and encourage local districts to use them. The materials are optional, at least for now. No dedicated funding was allocated, but CAIR-CT said it intends to work directly with the Department of Education on development to ensure “accuracy” and avoid “new biases.”
Chairman Memon celebrated the outcome, and spoke about filling gaps in textbooks he calls biased.
CAIR-CT’s recommended classroom resources, drawn from partner groups, include soft-pedaled definitions of jihad, critical race theory-infused lessons on “collective liberation,” materials from the controversial Southern Poverty Law Center, and defenses of practices widely criticized as oppressive.
The organization has also sponsored Capitol Iftars alongside State Rep. Maryam Khan—the lawmaker who drew attention for replacing the American flag with a Pakistani flag at her desk—and State Senator Saud Anwar, the "delusional" doctor.
Khan and Anwar have been frequent points of contact and public allies on related matters. CAIR-CT has highlighted meetings and advocacy involving them. Older records show CAIR-CT engaging Senator Richard Blumenthal (including a 2017 action alert after a meeting that informed his questioning of Jeff Sessions), and facilitating constituent access to Senator Chris Murphy’s office on Israel-related issues, including calls to block arms transfers.
Coincidentally, Murphy just backed Abdul El-Sayed, the Senate candidate in Michigan who collected more than $115,000 from at least 41 individuals who currently work for CAIR, previously worked for it, or have held leadership positions with the group (including national and state chapter officials). Additionally, El-Sayed’s father-in-law, Dr. Jukaku (or Tayeb) Jukaku, served as a CAIR-Michigan board member and was previously president of the chapter (around 2005–2010).
El-Sayed has appeared at CAIR events. In 2022, he spoke at a CAIR event (reportedly paid for the engagement) and criticized an Oklahoma ban on Sharia law, comparing it to the Trail of Tears. He was also featured in connection with earlier CAIR national conferences (e.g., around his 2018 gubernatorial run).
Counterterrorism analysts (e.g., in Senate testimony) and conservative media outlets have highlighted these links—alongside El-Sayed’s past college involvement with Muslim Student Association activities and some earlier writings supportive of elements of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood during the Arab Spring—as raising concerns.
Progressive and CAIR-aligned sources frame the scrutiny as "Islamophobic attacks," claiming CAIR is a mainstream civil rights group and that El-Sayed is not a formal CAIR member or leader.
Connecticut students may soon receive the sanitized version of this story—courtesy of the same network now enjoying direct access to the governor and the curriculum process.
Stay updated with the latest in the Constitution State with The CT Centinal
