Dear Representative Schiff,

I am writing today to ask for your support of Representative Mike Honda’s efforts to encourage the House Republican leadership to condemn the February 4th comments made by Representative Howard Coble. Furthermore, I would hope you would support Representative Honda’s request that the GOP leadership persuade Representative Coble to step down from his chairmanship of the subcommittee on crime, terrorism, and homeland security.

As I am sure you are aware, Representative Coble stated on a radio talk show on February 4th that he agreed with President Roosevelt’s decision to sign Executive Order 9066, which directed the military to detain tens of thousands of Japanese-Americans. While Representative Coble has backed away from his original statements somewhat, he has never issued a formal apology, despite the public protests of the Japanese-American community.

What is even more troubling is that Representative Coble is the chairman of the House subcommittee on crime, terrorism, and homeland security. It is his duty to ensure that our executive branch does not overstep its bounds and trample on the civil rights of others in its efforts to protect the United States against terrorism. But by apologizing for one of the clearest examples of such abuse by a previous administration, he raises questions about his ability to protect the rights of Arab-Americans and others today.

As tomorrow is the sixty-first anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 9066, I hope that you will join with Representative Honda in his efforts to ensure that all Americans, including Representative Coble, understand that the internment of Japanese Americans was a crime which should never again be allowed to occur. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Steve Ross