PHOENIX, July 6 - Republican candidate for Congress in Arizona's Fourth Congressional District Richard Grayson called an early morning press conference today to deny rumors that he was trying to run as "the queer Muslim Afro-punk candidate from El Barrio" -- not that there's anything wrong with that.
"There have been many disgusting rumors and innuendos in the 2008 campaign: for example, sleazy commentators who note that Obama rhymes with Osama. That has no more relevance than the fact that McCain rhymes with no brain," Grayson said.
"Similarly, I deny the fact that I have temporarily changed my name to Richard Hussein Grayson has anything to do with my supposedly running as 'the queer Muslim Afro-punk candidate from El Barrio'," Grayson continued, quickly adding " -- not that there's anything wrong with that, but I'm a nice Jewish boy."
"It's simply that I, like thousands of others on Facebook and throughout America, have temporarily changed my middle name to Hussein to stand up against bigotry and ignorance," the candidate said.
Grayson ended the press conference by announcing that he would soon return to his original middle name. "Within weeks, inshallah," he said, "I'll be back as Richard Milhous Grayson."
Grayson is running as a state-certified write-in candidate against Don Karg in the Sept. 2 Republican primary for the U.S. House seat currently held by Rep. Ed Pastor.
