Anti-Muslim group plans to hold fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago days after the Trump Organization canceled another such hate group's gala there

  • Center for Security Policy, a Washington, DC, think tank, has a permit to host its annual Flame Dinner at Mar-a-Lago on November 23 
  • Southern Poverty Law Center has labeled the Center an anti-Muslim hate group
  • It was founded by conspiracy theorist Frank Gaffney, who falsely claimed that President Barack Obama was Muslim 
  • Earlier this month, Trump Organization canceled $1,500-per-person gala sponsored by ACT for America, also considered a hate group  

Another controversial anti-Muslim group is planning to hold a fundraiser at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, less than two weeks after the Trump Organization pulled the plug on a similar event.

The Center for Security Policy, a Washington, DC, think tank that has been labelled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), obtained a permit from the City of Palm Beach on October 4 to host its annual Flame Dinner at the president’s luxury resort on November 23.

The Palm Beach Post reported that tickets for the event start at $650.

President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida has been revealed as the venue of an upcoming dinner organized by the anti-Muslim group Center for Security Policy

President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida has been revealed as the venue of an upcoming dinner organized by the anti-Muslim group Center for Security Policy 

The permit for the dinner came through just two days after the Trump Organization, which operates the resort, cancelled a $1,500-per-person gala sponsored by ACT for America, which also appears on SPLC's list of American hate groups.

That event was set for November 7, but on October 6, the Trump Organization said 'this group absolutely will not be hosting their event at Mar-a-Lago,

The Center was founded by conspiracy theorist Frank Gaffney (pictured), who falsely claimed that President Barack Obama was Muslim

The Center was founded by conspiracy theorist Frank Gaffney (pictured), who falsely claimed that President Barack Obama was Muslim

The SPLC, a civil rights advocacy organization dedicated to identifying and studying hate groups, described the Center for Security Police as a 'conspiracy-oriented mouthpiece for the growing anti-Muslim movement.'

CSP was founded by right-wing activist Frank Gaffney, best known for promoting the conspiracy theory that former President Barack Obama was a secret Muslim, reported The Palm Beach Post.

‘The man now happy to have his Islamic-rooted middle name featured prominently has engaged in the most consequential bait-and-switch since Adolf Hitler duped Neville Chamberlain over Czechoslovakia at Munich,’ Gaffney wrote in an article published by the Washington Times in 2009.

‘There is mounting evidence that the president not only identifies with Muslims, but actually may still be one himself.’

Gaffney also claimed that the Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated the US government.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a group that advocates on behalf of American Muslims, is now calling on the Trump Organization to scrap the November 23 dinner.

‘The Trump Organization made the right decision to cancel a previous event hosted by an anti-Muslim hate group, and we call them to do so again,’ CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw said in a statement.

Center for Security Policy CEO Fred Fleitz (pictured) argued that his group is not anti-Muslim

Center for Security Policy CEO Fred Fleitz (pictured) argued that his group is not anti-Muslim

‘The President of the United States should not profit from a group that makes its money by demonizing an entire faith and whose founder traffics in widely-debunked conspiracy theories, including that former President Obama is Muslim and that mosques want to destroy western civilization from within.’

Earlier this month, the Trump Organization canceled a $1,500-per-person gala sponsored by ACT for America, also considered a hate group

Earlier this month, the Trump Organization canceled a $1,500-per-person gala sponsored by ACT for America, also considered a hate group 

Fred Fleitz, president and CEO of the Center for Security Policy, expressed confidence that his group's event will go forward as planned.

‘We are honored to have this event at Mar-a-Lago,’ he told The Palm Beach Post.

Fleitz, who at one time served as chief of staff for former Trump national security adviser John Bolton and took the reins of CSP in January, pushed back against the claim that his organization was anti-Muslim, telling the Palm Beach Post that the group has been working with Muslims to combat terrorism.

He also sought to distance the group from its founder, stating that Frank Gaffney does not speak for CSP anymore.

During the November 23 dinner, CSP is expected to present its Keeper of the Flame Award to the House Freedom Caucus, which was co-founded by Trump’s acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney.

Past recipients have included former president Ronald Reagan and former Vice President Dick Cheney.

At last year's dinner, Rep Devin Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, was recognized with the award.

During the November 23 dinner, CSP is expected to present an award to the House Freedom Caucus, which was co-founded by Trump’s acting Chief of Staff Nick Mulvaney

During the November 23 dinner, CSP is expected to present an award to the House Freedom Caucus, which was co-founded by Trump’s acting Chief of Staff Nick Mulvaney