On Fox News Sunday, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) squared off against Rep. Peter King (R-NY) over the issue of surveillance of the Muslim community in order to identify threats. King supports it. Feinstein does not.

That begs the question: Which one of the two is afflicted with Islamophobia?

Here are the relevant excerpts, via RCP:

KING: Listen, the threat is coming from within the Muslim community in these cases, in New York. That’s why Commissioner Kelly has 1,000 police officers out in the community. Unfortunately, he gets smeared by The New York Times and The Associated Press.

Wouldn’t someone with a phobia of Islam avoid such a position?

That leads to Feinstein’s view:

FEINSTEIN: With respect to whether we are doing enough in the Muslim community, I think we should take a look at that. But I don’t think we need to go and develop some real disdain and hatred on television about it (advocating that the media not cover the threat).

WALLACE: I must say, I don’t think that’s what Congressman King was saying. He was saying, that’s where the threat was coming from. We have to address that threat.

FEINSTEIN: Well, this came at this point from two individuals. That’s what we really do know. We do not know what their connections are.

So I think we ought to find out before we begin to charge them with all kinds of associations.

Based on what a phobia is – an irrational fear – it would seem that Feinstein is the one who has it.

“Criticism of Islam is no more a sign of Islamophobia than criticism of Nazism is a sign of Nazi-phobia. Both fears are rational, which necessarily means they are not phobias.” – The Case FOR Islamophobia, p. 5

If King is advocating a position that seeks to confront the problem and Feinstein is advocating a position that avoids it, who is potentially most afraid of the problem?

Isn’t that the person with the phobia?