The Arab Revolt Worries the American Right
Published in La Presse
(Canada) on 3 February 2011
by Richard Hétu (link to original)
Instead of reacting with enthusiasm to the images of Arab protesters demanding liberty and democracy, a number of America’s right-wing personalities are alarmed by what is taking place. From Glenn Beck to Newt Gingrich and Mike Huckabee, they see the protests against authoritarian regimes in the region as a direct threat to the United States and Israel. Some of them even go as far as to compare Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter, who “lost” Iran in 1979.
Be afraid — be very afraid. The demonstrations in Egypt could lead to a “restoration of the Islamic caliphate” in the Middle East and parts of Europe. Our Western way of life could be on its way out, a loss that would not only delight the Muslim Brotherhood but also some communist-leaning Americans, such as the former far-left militant Bill Ayers, as well as members of the anti-war group Code Pink.
Are you having trouble following Glenn Beck’s explanations? You are not alone. Since Monday the Fox News moderator has outdone himself, making alarming remarks and the most bizarre connections about the crisis in the Arab world. In particular, he sees the Tunisian revolt as the trigger factor for a third world war and also sees the Egyptian demonstrations as a repeat of Iran’s Islamic Revolution of 1979.
“It is not about freedom. It is not about democracy. It is about an Islamic state,” he declared on Monday to his viewers while sharing his opinion on the issues surrounding the upheaval in Egypt.*
Mubarak, “A Friend of Peace”
The comments from Glenn Beck, as crazy as they seem, illustrate an unexpected phenomena: After showing unreserved approval for George W. Bush’s speech in favor of liberty and democracy in the Arab world, today a large portion of the American right has become alarmed by the wave of popular protest against authoritarian regimes in the region, including that of Hosni Mubarak.
Mike Huckabee, Republican ex-governor of Arkansas and potential presidential candidate in 2012, said that, in particular, it was a “real shock and surprise … at how quickly the Obama administration abandoned” the Egyptian president, describing him as a “friend to peace and stability.”
The Texan televangelist John Hagee, founder of the organization Christians United for Israel, is worried about the impact of the Egyptian demonstrations on the security of the Hebrew State. “Israel will soon be surrounded by enemies screaming for their blood,” he wrote on his website. “Will America support them? Our president certainly has not been supportive of Israel to this point in his administration; why would he change now?”
Obama and Carter
Since the beginning of the revolt against Mubarak’s regime, several voices from the right have made a parallel between Barack Obama and Jimmy Carter, suggesting that the 44th president risks seeing Egypt fall under Islamist iron rule, as was the case for Iran during Carter’s presidency. According to Newt Gingrich, another potential candidate for the presidency in 2012, Obama should take some of the blame if such a situation occurs.
“The president went to Cairo and gave his famous speech in which he explained that we should all be friends together because we're all the same people doing the same things and there are no differences between us. Well, I think there are a lot of differences between the Muslim Brotherhood and the rest of us,” stated the former speaker of the House of Representatives in an interview with Fox News.
*Editor’s Note: This statement by Glenn Beck was aired on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011.
Be afraid — be very afraid. The demonstrations in Egypt could lead to a “restoration of the Islamic caliphate” in the Middle East and parts of Europe. Our Western way of life could be on its way out, a loss that would not only delight the Muslim Brotherhood but also some communist-leaning Americans, such as the former far-left militant Bill Ayers, as well as members of the anti-war group Code Pink.
Are you having trouble following Glenn Beck’s explanations? You are not alone. Since Monday the Fox News moderator has outdone himself, making alarming remarks and the most bizarre connections about the crisis in the Arab world. In particular, he sees the Tunisian revolt as the trigger factor for a third world war and also sees the Egyptian demonstrations as a repeat of Iran’s Islamic Revolution of 1979.
“It is not about freedom. It is not about democracy. It is about an Islamic state,” he declared on Monday to his viewers while sharing his opinion on the issues surrounding the upheaval in Egypt.*
Mubarak, “A Friend of Peace”
The comments from Glenn Beck, as crazy as they seem, illustrate an unexpected phenomena: After showing unreserved approval for George W. Bush’s speech in favor of liberty and democracy in the Arab world, today a large portion of the American right has become alarmed by the wave of popular protest against authoritarian regimes in the region, including that of Hosni Mubarak.
Mike Huckabee, Republican ex-governor of Arkansas and potential presidential candidate in 2012, said that, in particular, it was a “real shock and surprise … at how quickly the Obama administration abandoned” the Egyptian president, describing him as a “friend to peace and stability.”
The Texan televangelist John Hagee, founder of the organization Christians United for Israel, is worried about the impact of the Egyptian demonstrations on the security of the Hebrew State. “Israel will soon be surrounded by enemies screaming for their blood,” he wrote on his website. “Will America support them? Our president certainly has not been supportive of Israel to this point in his administration; why would he change now?”
Obama and Carter
Since the beginning of the revolt against Mubarak’s regime, several voices from the right have made a parallel between Barack Obama and Jimmy Carter, suggesting that the 44th president risks seeing Egypt fall under Islamist iron rule, as was the case for Iran during Carter’s presidency. According to Newt Gingrich, another potential candidate for the presidency in 2012, Obama should take some of the blame if such a situation occurs.
“The president went to Cairo and gave his famous speech in which he explained that we should all be friends together because we're all the same people doing the same things and there are no differences between us. Well, I think there are a lot of differences between the Muslim Brotherhood and the rest of us,” stated the former speaker of the House of Representatives in an interview with Fox News.
*Editor’s Note: This statement by Glenn Beck was aired on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011.
Pardon me for saying that the story is full of holes. It needed balancing. From Egyptians point of view both Israel and America have in no way been a blessing to Egypt and the Palestinians. I am not against the Jews. They have a knack to ride out all sorts of crises and storms, some of which have been of their own makings. Take the creation of Israel. It claims its right on Biblical grounds when God gave it to them. Okay. But how come Israel dispensed with God at Israel’s creation? “God id not do enough for Jews,” said Ben-Gurion. So allegiance to God was replaced by a symbolic “Rock of Israel.” America is by itself under an ominous threat – from within. It has lost the luster of its moral high ground. Its blind support and military aid to Israel contributed to the genocide of Palestinians and continuation of authoritarian rule in the Middle East. Much of the democracies in the American supported countries are puppet show. These can be fixed by binding them with democracy’s playing rules. Examples are Pakistan and India. Afghanistan is destiny lies in its location of a “conduit” to trade and transit to and from a resurgent central Asia. The Taliban and Al Qaida have no room in a democratic world. Now let us look at the threat of Islamic Brotherhood and the likes of it. These outfits are mediocre, authoritarian, more rhetoric than substance and quite unfit to meet workings of modern states. God keeps a balance in world powers. God stopped Arabs from the threat to France when Liberia fell to the Arabs. God stopped the Ottomans at Vienna. Iranian theocracy has suffered a big crack in its credibility by its rigging of recent elections and suppression of dissent. Egypt would soon adapt to democracy just like Turkey. If a referendum is held for Jews to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ about Israel on the basis of staying on the right or wrong side of God, you know the answer.