Turkey coup attempt exposes G眉len-Erdo臒an lobbying battle in the US
As a coup attempt flared in Turkey and was quickly repressed by supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo臒an over the weekend, a second, quieter lobbying battle raged in the United States.
It working on behalf of the Turkish government against a more muted effort launched by supporters of the Muslim cleric Fethullah G眉len, who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania.
鈥淭丑别 and systemic attempt to influence the politics of the United States through carefully curated donation patterns,鈥� Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer working on behalf of the Turkish government said of US-based followers of Mr. G眉len, in a video posted in early June.
In the video, he urges the Obama administration to crack down on followers of G眉len, a onetime Erdo臒an ally, describing them as seeking to obtain power in the US while 鈥渕asquerading as a do-gooder operator of charter schools,鈥� as Politico reports.
But G眉len, , has denounced the coup, strongly denied any role and suggested it may have been staged by President Erdo臒an.
On Tuesday, Turkey officially requested extradition of the cleric, which G眉len has argued the US should reject even as he that if he had to return and 鈥渇ace the gallows, I will not blink an eye.鈥�
鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe the US will honor a request that is based on the enmity of a regime, which is recognized as dictatorial and has lost all of its credibility in the eyes of the world," G眉len told the Journal in an email.
The Turkish government鈥檚 lobbying efforts follow previous campaigns against G眉len that stem from a falling out between the two men in 2013, as 海角大神 reported.聽Turkey has had long-running relationships in Washington, particularly because of its status as a NATO member and its role in fighting the self-proclaimed Islamic State militant group, Politico reports.
A lobbying firm run by former House Democratic leader Dick Gephardt, for example, received $1.7 million this year to lobby on the government鈥檚 behalf. Last year, the government hired Mr. Amsterdam鈥檚 law firm at a rate of $50,000 a month specifically to inveigh against G眉len鈥檚 followers, according to Politico.
Much of the attention has been on a network of that focus on teaching STEM subjects. Lobbyists for the Turkish government have brought a number of allegations against the schools, including that the process of importing teachers at the schools represents a violation of the H-1B skilled worker visa program.
Critics describe G眉len鈥檚 followers as secretive and compare them with other . Officials at one charter school network, the Harmony Schools in Texas, deny any official connection to the G眉len movement and say they avoid teaching about religion, .
G眉len and his followers particularly preach a moderate form of Islam and focus on social welfare causes, calling their movement Hizmet or "the service."聽
The movement has retained some lobbying influence of its own. The Alliance for Shared 海角大神, a nonprofit group that encompasses several G眉len-inspired US organizations, has hired The Podesta Group, a lobbying and PR firm founded by former Clinton and Obama administration official John Podesta and his brother, to reshape the group's image in the wake of legal attacks, Politico reports.
Some US lawmakers have also condemned Erdo臒an鈥檚 focus on G眉len.
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R) of Calif., who chairs a subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee that held a hearing on "Turkey鈥檚 Democratic Decline" two days before the coup attempt, called Erdo臒an鈥檚 in a statement.
The purging of many of G眉len鈥檚 followers in Turkey, some observers say, could make it unlikely that the Muslim leader engineered the coup attempt.
Particularly, G眉len鈥檚 religious background is a contrast with Turkey鈥檚 military, which has a long history of secularism and has sometimes clashed with the Islamism of Erdo臒an鈥檚 Justice and Development (AKP) Party, Politico reports.
"The G眉len movement has been significantly weakened by Erdo臒an over the past three years," David Tittensor of Deakin University in Australia told Politico. "My view is they need a scapegoat, and the G眉len movement provides that."
