Farrakhan Denounces Times Story

Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan on Sunday night denounced a Los Angeles Times story that quoted him as questioning the national loyalty of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joseph I. Lieberman.

The Times “made mischief of my words,” Farrakhan said. He never denied making the comments but said, “I know I never spoke one anti-Semitic word.”

The story, which appeared Saturday, quoted Farrakhan as saying: “Mr. Lieberman, as an Orthodox Jew, is also a dual citizen of Israel. The state of Israel is not synonymous with the United States, and the test he would probably have to pass is: Would he be more faithful to the Constitution of the United States than to the ties that any Jewish person would have to the state of Israel?”

He denounced The Times while speaking to a crowd of about 3,000 people at Compton College Sunday evening.

“The L.A. Times made mischief with my words and we are desirous of a meeting with the L.A. Times, because it’s not what we said, it’s what they wrote,” he said. “And what they wrote was carried all over the world, getting people to think very ugly things about Brother Farrakhan.”

He also said: “If we question Gov. [George W.] Bush, we’re not anti-Texan. If we question Dick Cheney, we’re not anti-Wyoming. If we’re questioning Mr. Lieberman on the issue, don’t raise the issue of anti-Semitism to stifle the political debate.”

The Muslim leader is in town to promote his Million Family March, scheduled for October. In the Saturday Times story, he was quoted as saying allegations that he is anti-Semitic are “so mistaken.”