Is Obama Winning the Hearts and Minds of the Arab and Muslim World?
Creators Syndicate – “It’s conceivable,” said then-presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008, “that there are those in the Arab world who say to themselves, ‘This is a guy who spent some time in the Muslim world, has a middle name of Hussein, and appears more worldly and has called for talks with people, and so he’s not going to be engaging in the same sort of cowboy diplomacy as George Bush.'” A 2008 Zogby International poll surveyed those in the “friendly” Arab countries of Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Eighty-three percent viewed the United States “somewhat” or “very” unfavorably. Enter President Barack Hussein Obama, a man with a keen and learned understanding of the Arab world — a man who promised to restore our image through outreach based on mutual respect and understanding. Bush, Obama believed, governed with a swagger and aggressiveness that alienated friends and hardened the hearts of enemies. To forge a “new beginning” and find
