Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) broke from President Obama over the New York City mosque and Islamic community center. Critics are concerned about the proposed location near Ground Zero.
Reid, who is battling to keep his seat, said Monday the mosque should be “built someplace else” instead of within a few blocks of where the World Trade Center collapsed after terrorists slammed planes into the buildings, killing more than 2,500 people.
“The First Amendment protects freedom of religion,” Reid spokesman Jim Manley said in a statement, Politico reported Monday afternoon. “Sen. Reid respects that but thinks that the mosque should be built someplace else. If the Republicans are being sincere, they would help us pass this long-overdue bill to help the first responders whose health and livelihoods have been devastated because of their bravery on 9/11, rather than continuing to block this much-needed legislation.”
Last week, Obama said he supported the right of Muslims to develop land they own and practice their faith as freely as other Americans do, but stopped short of endorsing the Park51/Cordoba House project.
Share your thoughts about Reid’s statement and the possibility developers will move the mosque.