Darvish Intelligence: Why Trump Must Reopen the Case Against CAIR: A Former CAIR Director Speaks Out

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Why Trump Must Reopen the Case Against CAIR: A Former CAIR Director Speaks Out

By Bobby Darvish

As an Iranian-American ex-Muslim, and as a former Executive Director of CAIR-Columbus (CAIR-Ohio) between 2009 and 2010, I have a deeply personal understanding of what CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) really represents. During my tenure, I had direct access to internal operations, donor lists, and the political strategies behind the polished public relations image CAIR promotes. What I witnessed made it clear: CAIR's true loyalties do not lie with American ideals of liberty and justice, but with foreign Islamist movements rooted in Hamas (backed by Qatar) and Hezbollah (backed by Iran).

That is why I left after my tenure, and why today I am compelled to speak plainly: President Trump needs to push for the reopening of the case against CAIR, particularly its relationship to the Holy Land Foundation (HLF) scandal.

In 2008, the Holy Land Foundation was convicted for funneling millions of dollars to Hamas, an organization recognized as a terrorist group by the U.S. government. CAIR was named an unindicted co-conspirator in that case — a designation which should have triggered further federal investigations into its activities and funding sources (U.S. Department of Justice, 2008).

However, when Barack Obama entered office in 2009, the FBI under his administration quietly shut down all ongoing investigations into CAIR. The excuse given was "outreach" to the Muslim community — a political calculation aimed at building support among Islamic groups, regardless of their terror connections (The Investigative Project on Terrorism, 2011). It was a betrayal of American national security.

Trump’s first term saw heroic efforts to uproot deep state corruption, but the Obama-era sabotage of the CAIR case was never fully revisited. Despite President Trump labeling radical Islamic terrorism as a real threat to America, entrenched bureaucrats — especially in the DOJ and FBI — continued to block efforts to fully investigate or prosecute CAIR’s affiliations. Now, with Trump poised for a second term and allies like Kash Patel ready to take senior positions, we have a historic opportunity to finish what was started.

Kash Patel must immediately move to:

Reopen the CAIR investigation tied to the Holy Land Foundation case.
Force CAIR to register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), given its well-documented ties to Hamas via Qatar and Hezbollah via Iran.
Audit CAIR’s donor base, especially at the local levels like Ohio, where during my time there, I personally saw individuals with financial ties to Middle Eastern governments and extremist organizations donating large sums.

This is not a theoretical threat. It is a national security imperative. During my first week at CAIR-Columbus, the Rifqa Bary controversy erupted — a teenage girl who had converted to Christianity from Islam and was fearing for her life. Ironically, I too have now converted to Christianity, and I understand all too well the pressures, threats, and isolation faced by converts who refuse to bow to Islamic supremacy.

CAIR’s role in the Rifqa Bary case was not to protect American rights or freedom of religion; it was to weaponize American civil rights laws to shield Islamic practices and intimidate critics. CAIR routinely leveraged media manipulation, political connections, and community organizing to silence apostates, critics, and even moderate Muslims who dared speak up.

Today, they continue these tactics, presenting themselves as a "civil rights" group while serving as an unregistered foreign lobby for jihadist causes. Enough is enough.

The Trump administration must make it a top priority to hold CAIR accountable. Register them as a foreign agent of Qatar and Iran. Investigate their networks. Protect Christian converts and all Americans from the creeping infiltration of Islamist extremism hiding behind political correctness.

As someone who once sat inside the belly of the beast, I can tell you firsthand: it’s now or never.