Update on Fred Grandy "Creeping Sharia" Tour in MD // VIDEO: Sen. Raskin, Democrats Sound Off

UPDATE: The Chevy Chase Patch has coverage of the MCCRC Creeping Sharia event this weekend. In the article, Maryland Juice's first source outs herself. Also, a new resident has published an op-ed in the Patch complaining about County Executive Ike Leggett's signing of a letter complaining about Fred Grandy.

For a few weeks, Maryland Juice has followed the spectacle of former Congressman Fred Grandy's anti-Sharia law speaking tour. The circus landed in Chevy Chase last weekend, so Montgomery Democrats pushed backed on the propaganda with a counter-event to cut through the fear-mongering. The Montgomery County Civil Rights Coalition (MCCRC) hosted the event with former Delegate Saqib Ali. They also took photos and video footage of their event: Is Creeping Shariah’ a Real Threat or a Trumped Up Scare Tactic? We provide some highlights below, but please check out the full archive:

Reflection Time: Maryland Juice would also like to pause and ask:  Are we really debating whether or not there is a risk of Sharia law creeping into America? Indeed, in the midst of -- two wars, a housing market collapse, class warfare waged by billionaires, record unemployment, and a simple crisis of confidence among ordinary Americans -- the Chevy Chase Republican Women's Club chose to book a speaker whose favorite topic is to flag the employment of Muslims in our government.... and *pssst* you should be scared of them!

GOP & Tea Party Voices Respond to Montgomery Dems // Fred Grandy For Governor in 2014

Earlier this week, Maryland Juice released a letter from a number of Montgomery County Democrats blasting the County's GOP. Several officials have taken issue with their choice of speaker for a September 24th Chevy Chase Republican Women's Club event: former Congressman Fred Grandy. Other recent events featuring Mr. Grandy have been cancelled in Virginia, presumably because he uses terrorism as an excuse to stoke fear of innocent Muslims living in America (note: he was canned from his WMAL radio show because of this).

Even still, Tea Party and GOP voices are thumbing their noses at the County Democrats' letter. Maryland Juice highlights a few responses below, but we are kicking off the series with the following Twitter message from Red Montgomery blogger Caleb. Perhaps controversy and the resulting exposure are motivating Grandy's speaking tour. If so, he may be taking notes from Sarah Palin's playbook:

Maryland Juice hopes the GOP chooses Grandy. Good luck in 2014!

Montgomery Democrats Issue Letter Condemning Local GOP Extremist Speaker

UPDATE: Council President Valerie Ervin is also a signatory to the Montgomery Democrats' letter. Also, the Chevy Chase Patch reports that Democrats have decided to engage the Montgomery GOP in dialogue, as they're now hosting a 9/24 discussion prior to the Fred Grandy event: 

Earlier that day, a panel presentation—"Is 'Creeping Shariah' a Real Threat or a Trumped Up Scare Tactic?"—will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Wisconsin Place Community Center (5311 Friendship Blvd., Chevy Chase).

The speakers invited to this event include Jamie Raskin (Maryland state senator and professor of constitutional law at American University), Corey Saylor (national legislative director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations), civil liberties activist Thomas Nephew and Fred Grandy ("or any designated representative," the invitation says).

Maryland Juice previously broke news of the Chevy Chase Republican Women's Club hosting an event featuring controversial speaker Fred Grandy. In our prior coverage, we noted:

Fred Grandy is a former member of the U.S. House from Iowa, but he is better known as 'Gopher' from the television series the Love Boat. He recently gained notoriety after being fired from his most recent gig as a morning radio personality on WMAL. Grandy's increasingly anti-Muslim show was pushed off the air after on-air comments his wife made....

Today, a number of Democratic officials issued a letter condemning the Montgomery County GOP. Their letter, which appears below, is signed by Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett, Senate Majority Leader Rob Garagiola, House Majority Leader Kumar Barve, and a number of state and county officials:

Saqib Ali vs. Maryland GOP "Crazies" // Plus, an Op-ed Steel Cage Match: Young Dem vs. Old GOP

UPDATE: Montgomery County GOP Chair Mark Uncapher responds to this article in the comments section. Check it out!

Earlier this month, Maryland Juice broke the story about a controversial Republican Women's Club event being held in Chevy Chase. At issue was/is their choice of speaker: former Congressman and local radio personality, Fred Grandy. In our prior coverage, we noted:

Fred Grandy is a former member of the U.S. House from Iowa, but he is better known as 'Gopher' from the television series the Love Boat. He recently gained notoriety after being fired from his most recent gig as a morning radio personality on WMAL. Grandy's increasingly anti-Muslim show was pushed off the air after on-air comments his wife made....

The fight is now blowing up, with the Montgomery County GOP Chair stepping into the fray, multiple protests, and a lot of angry right-wing blog entries.  

Read Maryland Juice's snapshot below -- and -- check out our new blog feature: "Op-Ed Steel Cage Match." Today's competitors? Young DEM vs. Old GOP.