Ellison, Meeks and Carson’s attendance at the 2013 dinner is just the latest tie between Democratic members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) and Farrakhan.

One CBC member, Illinois Rep. Danny Davis, defended Farrakhan and praised him as an “outstanding human being” in an interview with TheDC last week. Davis openly admitted to having a personal relationship with Farrakhan in the interview.

Ellison, who is also vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), has previously struggled to put distance between himself and Farrakhan.