华盛顿——周四，一个参议院委员会突然取消了对一名有争议的前将军被提名担任五角大楼高级职位的确认听证会，此前他对伊斯兰教和其他煽动性言论发表了攻击性言论。
退休陆军准将安东尼·塔塔(Anthony Tata)被任命为五角大楼负责政策的副部长，这一提名已经遭到了参议院民主党人的抨击，他们在本周给他发了一封信，要求他辞职。塔塔是唐纳德·特朗普总统的坚定支持者，也是福克斯新闻的评论员，他一直在国防部担任高级顾问。
周四还不清楚他的提名是否会被撤回。
据媒体报道，塔塔在2018年发布推文称伊斯兰教是“我所知道的最暴虐的暴力宗教”，并称前总统巴拉克·奥巴马为“恐怖主义领袖”，并称他为穆斯林。这些推文后来被删除了。
参议院军事委员会主席、俄克拉荷马州参议员吉姆·殷霍夫在听证会预定开始前不久宣布取消听证会。
殷霍夫说:“有许多民主党人和共和党人不知道足够的安东尼塔塔考虑他在这个时候一个非常重要的位置。”他说，专家组直到周四才从塔塔拿到所需文件。“正如我昨晚告诉总统的那样，8月份休会即将到来，我们已经没有时间了，所以现在举行听证会没有任何用处，他同意了。”
五角大楼首席发言人乔纳森·霍夫曼告诉记者，塔塔继续担任国防部长马克·埃斯珀的顾问。
霍夫曼在五角大楼的一次简报会上说:“国防部期待塔塔将军今天有机会与委员会分享他在领导大型公共组织、公共部门组织方面的经验和成功，以及他在国家安全方面的丰富经验。”
当被问及斯珀是否支持塔塔关于伊斯兰教的推文时，霍夫曼说，“将军本人已经声明，他不相信或支持他所做的评论。”他给委员会写了一封信，撤回了那些声明。”
该委员会的首席民主党人、罗德岛州的参议员杰克·里德说，参议员们周二举行了闭门会议，殷霍夫取消听证会“做了正确的事情”。
里德说:“公平地说，两党议员都对这位候选人提出了严肃的问题。”
根据发送这封信的参议员的声明，塔塔收回了他的声明，“他删除了许多声明，只是在他的提名公开之后。”他们说，塔塔称这些推文是“忠实的公共服务40年来的一个反常现象。”
九名民主党参议员和佛蒙特州独立参议员伯尼·桑德斯在给塔塔的信中写道:“你给委员会领导的信似乎是一个突然意识到自己的提名岌岌可危的人适时撤回的。”但你过去的多次声明不能简单地视为失常而不予理会。”
伊斯兰组织一再呼吁立法者反对塔塔的提名。他们欢呼听证会取消。
美国-伊斯兰关系委员会(Council on American-Islamic Relations)政府事务主任罗伯特·麦克考(Robert McCaw)表示:“如果塔塔先生真的没有足够的票数继续竞选，他的失败将代表着对反穆斯林偏见的胜利，也代表着仇恨在我们的政府中没有一席之地的原则。”
塔塔在军队服役28年后于2009年退休，曾担任过许多指挥和战斗工作。
Trump nominee hearing pulled after furor over Islam remarks
WASHINGTON -- A Senate committee abruptly canceled a confirmation hearing Thursday on a controversial former general's nomination to a top Pentagon post after a furor over offensive remarks he made about Islam and other inflammatory comments.
The nomination of retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata to be the Pentagon's under secretary for policy was already under fire from Senate Democrats, who sent a letter to him this week calling for him to withdraw. Tata, a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump and a Fox News commentator, has been working in the department as a senior adviser.
It wasn't clear Thursday if his nomination would be withdrawn.
According to media reports, Tata posted tweets in 2018 calling Islam the “most oppressive violent religion I know of,” and he called former President Barack Obama a “terrorist leader,” and referred to him as Muslim. The tweets were later taken down.
The Senate Armed Services Committee chair, Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., announced the hearing's cancellation shortly before it was scheduled to start.
“There are many Democrats and Republicans who didn’t know enough about Anthony Tata to consider him for a very significant position at this time,” Inhofe said. He said the panel didn't get required documents from Tata until Thursday. "As I told the president last night, we’re simply out of time with the August recess coming, so it wouldn’t serve any useful purpose to have a hearing at this point, and he agreed.”
Jonathan Hoffman, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, told reporters that Tata continues to work as an adviser to Defense Secretary Mark Esper.
“The department was looking forward to Gen. Tata having the opportunity to share his experience and success leading large public organizations, public sector organizations, and his extensive national security experience with the committee today,” Hoffman said during a Pentagon briefing.
Asked if Esper supported Tata’s tweets on Islam, Hoffman said, “The general himself has stated that he does not believe or support the comments he made. He issued a letter to the committee retracting those statements.”
The committee's top Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, said the senators had a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, and Inhofe “did the right thing” by canceling the hearing.
'"It’s fair to say members on both sides of the aisle have raised serious questions about this nominee," Reed said.
According to a statement from the senators who sent the letter, Tata walked back his statements, “many of which he deleted, only after his nomination became public.” They said Tata referred to the tweets as an “aberration in a four-decade thread of faithful public service.”
The letter to Tata, signed by nine Democratic senators and Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, said, “Your letter to committee leadership appears to be a conveniently timed retraction by someone who has suddenly realized his nomination is in jeopardy. But your multiple past statements cannot be dismissed simply as an aberration.”
Islamic groups have repeatedly called for lawmakers to oppose Tata's nomination. And they hailed the hearing cancellation.
“If Mr. Tata truly does not have enough votes to proceed, his defeat will represent a victory over anti-Muslim bigotry, and for the principle that hatred has no place in our government,” said Robert McCaw, government affairs director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Tata, who retired in 2009 after 28 years in the Army, served in a number of command and combat jobs.
