Bloomberg defends mosque in emotional speech

In an emotional speech this afternoon, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg defended the proposed mosque and community center two blocks away from Ground Zero.

A panel today voted to remove a final hurdle for the proposed mosque, which several prominent national Republicans, including Sarah Palin and former Speaker Newt Gingrich, oppose because they say it's too close to the site of the September 11 attacks. A poll from last month indicates most New Yorkers also oppose the project.

"Whatever you may think of the proposed mosque and community center, lost in the heat of the debate has been a basic question: Should government attempt to deny private citizens the right to build a house of worship on private property based on their particular religion? That may happen in other countries, but we should never allow it to happen here," he said. (You can watch the video here.)

When speaking about the September 11 attacks, Bloomberg "choked up," according to a transcript from the Daily News:

On Sept. 11, 2001, thousands of first responders heroically rushed to the scene and saved tens of thousands of lives. More than 400 of those first responders did not make it out alive. In rushing into those burning buildings, not one of them asked, 'What God do you pray to?' (Bloomberg's voice cracks here a little as he gets choked up.) 'What beliefs do you hold?'

The New York Times' Sewell Chan reminds us that this is not the first time the mayor — known for his quick temper — has gone misty-eyed; he visibly choked up during a naturalization ceremony held at the New York Historical Society last year.