Go Ahead and Say It, Mr. President
Republicans are your true enemy.
By William Saletan
Again and again, Republicans won't name the enemy. They say he's too forgiving, too afraid of ideological conflict, too reluctant to wage all-out war, too eager to find people of good will on the other side.
Maybe they're right. Maybe he should come out and say it: The GOP is trying to destroy him.
Anyone who has watched Obama's genteel response to his Republican tormentors shouldn't be surprised at his delicacy about Islam. He resists generalizations and looks for common ground, whether the context is terrorism or domestic politics. No matter what Republicans do-That's not just my view; the majority of Republicans agree with that view."
Last fall, Republicans captured the Senate by running a held out an olive branch. There isn't "a liberal America or a conservative America," he argued. There's only "a United States of America." He acknowledged that pundits considered his bipartisan optimism naïve. But he concluded, "I still believe that we are one people."
Republicans responded with derision. When Obama said, "I have no more campaigns to run," they applauded mockingly. He poked them right back, with a wink: "I know, 'cause I won both of them." But then he turned the other cheek: "I hope you'll at least work with me where you do agree. And I commit to every Republican here tonight that I will not only seek out your ideas, I will seek to work with you to make this country stronger."
The next day, Obama gave a praised the Republican governors of Alaska, Michigan, and Ohio.
On Feb. 1, Obama was asked in an A large percentage of Republicans agree that we need comprehensive immigration reform." Instead of using the fight for partisan advantage, Obama spread the blame to his own party. "Republicans and Democrats in Congress should not be playing politics" with the department's funding, he warned.
On Feb. 6, Obama went to Indiana and speech to the Democratic National Committee, five of Obama's nine references to Republicans were positive. "If Republicans are serious about taking on the specific challenges that face the middle class," he pleaded, "we should welcome them."
That's how Obama treats his domestic adversaries. He doesn't take the bait. He doesn't define the whole opposition party by its worst elements. He rejects polarization. He emphasizes shared values. He reminds his own partisans that they, too, are sinners.
For Democrats, this can be exasperating. It's especially exasperating when Republicans refuse to take responsibility for, or even backs up Giuliani's insinuation that Obama favors the enemy over his own country: "[Giuliani] is understandably frustrated with a president who, as I said before, is fully willing to lecture the people of this country about the Crusades but is unwilling to call Islamic extremism for what it is."
Please. If we're going to start calling out religious and political groups for extremism, we could start at home with Republicans. Too many of them spew animus. Too many foment sectarianism. Too many sit by, or make excuses, as others appeal to tribalism. If Obama were to treat them the way they say he should treat Islam-holding the entire faith accountable for its ugliest followers-they'd squeal nonstop about slander and demagogy. They're lucky that's not his style.
Republicans are your true enemy.
By William Saletan
Again and again, Republicans won't name the enemy. They say he's too forgiving, too afraid of ideological conflict, too reluctant to wage all-out war, too eager to find people of good will on the other side.
Maybe they're right. Maybe he should come out and say it: The GOP is trying to destroy him.
Anyone who has watched Obama's genteel response to his Republican tormentors shouldn't be surprised at his delicacy about Islam. He resists generalizations and looks for common ground, whether the context is terrorism or domestic politics. No matter what Republicans do-That's not just my view; the majority of Republicans agree with that view."
Last fall, Republicans captured the Senate by running a held out an olive branch. There isn't "a liberal America or a conservative America," he argued. There's only "a United States of America." He acknowledged that pundits considered his bipartisan optimism naïve. But he concluded, "I still believe that we are one people."
Republicans responded with derision. When Obama said, "I have no more campaigns to run," they applauded mockingly. He poked them right back, with a wink: "I know, 'cause I won both of them." But then he turned the other cheek: "I hope you'll at least work with me where you do agree. And I commit to every Republican here tonight that I will not only seek out your ideas, I will seek to work with you to make this country stronger."
The next day, Obama gave a praised the Republican governors of Alaska, Michigan, and Ohio.
On Feb. 1, Obama was asked in an A large percentage of Republicans agree that we need comprehensive immigration reform." Instead of using the fight for partisan advantage, Obama spread the blame to his own party. "Republicans and Democrats in Congress should not be playing politics" with the department's funding, he warned.
On Feb. 6, Obama went to Indiana and speech to the Democratic National Committee, five of Obama's nine references to Republicans were positive. "If Republicans are serious about taking on the specific challenges that face the middle class," he pleaded, "we should welcome them."
That's how Obama treats his domestic adversaries. He doesn't take the bait. He doesn't define the whole opposition party by its worst elements. He rejects polarization. He emphasizes shared values. He reminds his own partisans that they, too, are sinners.
For Democrats, this can be exasperating. It's especially exasperating when Republicans refuse to take responsibility for, or even backs up Giuliani's insinuation that Obama favors the enemy over his own country: "[Giuliani] is understandably frustrated with a president who, as I said before, is fully willing to lecture the people of this country about the Crusades but is unwilling to call Islamic extremism for what it is."
Please. If we're going to start calling out religious and political groups for extremism, we could start at home with Republicans. Too many of them spew animus. Too many foment sectarianism. Too many sit by, or make excuses, as others appeal to tribalism. If Obama were to treat them the way they say he should treat Islam-holding the entire faith accountable for its ugliest followers-they'd squeal nonstop about slander and demagogy. They're lucky that's not his style.
