The Washington Post claims: As Arabs protest, Obama administration offers assertive support. I do not see much of real support there but for the usual empty words the Obama administration is now somewhat famous for.
Aside from that I need some help with this scaremongering paragraph:
Such an approach comes with a degree of risk in the region, where democratic reforms have often empowered well-organized Islamist movements at odds with U.S. objectives.
Which country in the Middle East, besides Iran, had "democratic reforms" which "empowered well-organized Islamist movements"?
I am not aware of even one. Any ideas which countries the writers where thinking of?
A bit later the authors claim:
Polls show U.S. popularity rising in many Arab countries since Obama took office and falling in a smaller number of others.
The latest Middle East poll by Brookings/Zogby, done in July 2010, found:
Early in the Obama administration, in April and May 2009, 51% of the respondents in the six countries expressed optimism about American policy in the Middle East. In the 2010 poll, only 16% were hopeful, while a majority – 63% – was discouraged.
The poll details (pdf) show "unfavorable" ratings for the U.S., mostly unchanged from 2008, at 85%. How is that a sign of "rising popularity"?
Further on:
So far, at least, the demonstrations in Egypt and Tunisia have not featured anti-American rhetoric or been shaped by political Islam.
Hmm …
Tunis, January 26 2011
The whole piece reads like White House spin dictated by some "administration official" written down by some stenographers without any factchecking or sense for reality.
Doesn't democracy, and its promotion, necessitate a free press?