August 18, 2010
Column #1,512
Obama: Lacks Wisdom
& Courage
By Mike McManus
WASHINGTON –
President Obama is neither a wise nor a courageous leader.
He knew that
polls were 2 to 1 against the building of a 15-story mosque near Ground Zero
where 2,700 Americans were killed by Muslim terrorists.
But
what did Barack Hussein Obama do?
He hosted an ifta
dinner, celebrating the beginning of Ramadan with Muslims. Nothing wrong
with that, a tradition that goes back to Thomas Jefferson in 1805.
What mattered is
what he said: “Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as
everybody else in this country.” (He’s right.)
However, he
added, “That involves the right to build a place of worship and a community
center on private property in Lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws
and ordinances. This is America and our commitment to religious freedom
must be unshakeable.”
Needless to say,
the Muslims who heard him were thrilled, as were no doubt a billion Muslims
round the world. However, the President’s statement infuriated his
opponents – and even many of his supporters.
“The decision to
build a mosque so close to Ground Zero is deeply troubling – as is the
President’s decision to endorse it,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner
(R-Ohio). “This is not an issue of law, whether religious freedom or local
zoning. This is an issue of respect for a tragic moment in our history.”
Relatives of 343
firefighters who died saving others – were horrified. Sally Regenhard, whose
firefighter son was killed at the World Trade Center, said the president had
failed to understand the issue. "As an Obama supporter, I really feel that
he's lost sight of the germane issue, which is not about freedom of
religion," she said. "It's about a gross lack of sensitivity to the 9/11
families and to the people who were lost."
By contrast, Pope
John Paul II told 14 Carmelite nuns they had to move a convent away from the
Auschwitz death camp, which is holy ground.
Obama undoubtedly
anticipated some negative response, but he may have been surprised that
Democrats were equally alarmed. The Washington Post reported, “How can this
possibly be helpful when feelings are still sore on this issue?” asked a
senior Democratic consultant to multiple Congressional races. “It’s best to
say nothing.”
Within hours of
his Ramadan speech, 1,000 miles away in Panama City, Obama told reporters
that while he believes that “In this country, we treat everybody equally and
in accordance with the law, regardless of race, regardless of religion,” but
added he was not endorsing construction of the Islamic Center:
“I was not
commenting, and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to
put a mosque there,” he said. “I was commenting very specifically on the
right people have that dates to our founding.”
Clearly, Obama
flipflopped, angering Muslims who heard him say initially that Muslims “have
the same rights to practice their religion” as others, including “the right
to build a place of worship in Lower Manhattan.”
Nor did his
“clarification” sit well with Democratic candidates such as Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid, in a tough re-election race in Nevada, who asked his
spokesman, Jim Manley, to say “The First Amendment protects freedom of
religion. Senator Reid respects that, but thinks that the mosque should be
built someplace else.”
Newt Gingrich
asserted, “There should be no mosque near Ground Zero in New York so long as
there are no churches or synagogues in Saudi Arabia. The time for double
standards that allow Islamists to behave aggressively toward us while they
demand our weakness and submission is over.”
Sen. John Cornyn,
Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said Obama’s
comments show that “he seems to be disconnected from the mainstream of
America…I do think it is unwise to build a mosque at the site where 3,000
Americans lost their lives as a result of a terrorist attack.” He predicted,
“The American people will render their verdict.”
What should Obama
have said? Had he been courageous, he could have affirmed the Muslims’
right to practice their faith in New York, but added, “If the imam and the
Muslim leadership in that community is so intent on building bridges, then
they should voluntarily move the mosque away from Ground Zero.”
Unfortunately,
those were the words of Rep. Peter King (R-NY), not those of the President.
Obama lacked the
wisdom to balance the right to worship with justice for America’s loss, and
the courage to be candid with Muslims.
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