By Barbara Slavin The battle for the Republican presidential nomination this year has made many Americans squirm as they watch grown men fling potty-mouthed playground insults at each other in lieu of serious discourse. Overseas, however, concerns are mounting at the prospect of a possible presidency by New York real estate magnate Donald Trump, whose […]
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Obama at the Intersection of Religion and Politics
Posted February 4th, 2016 at 4:16 pm (UTC-5)
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During a 24-hour span, President Barack Obama walked that line between American politics and American religion. On Wednesday’s first-of-his-presidency visit to a mosque, Obama thanked Muslim-Americans for their service to the country and acknowledged their concerns and fears of being targeted or blamed when terrorists strike. He assured Muslims — especially the young — that they fit in the American fabric, exhorting “You are not Muslim or American. You are Muslim and American.” Thursday, Obama took advantage of the annual National Prayer Breakfast to press the mostly Christian audience to reject an underlying theme in the presidential campaign, saying “faith is the great cure for fear.” The president’s high-wire act has drawn both praise and scorn.
Demagoguery or Democracy? Trump’s Take on Muslims
Posted December 9th, 2015 at 3:58 pm (UTC-5)
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“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” These famed words, written by American poet Emma Lazarus and inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, have greeted immigrants arriving on the shores of New York since 1903. They are the essence of these United States, the foundation of its democracy. So, when Republican hopeful Donald Trump proposed barring all Muslims from entering America in response to the San Bernadino terror attack is he practicing democratic principle of free speech? Or, are these the words of a demagogue?
I’m a Former U.S. Ambassador and an American Muslim
Posted December 8th, 2015 at 4:11 pm (UTC-5)
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I took my oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America with my hands on the Quran atop my wife’s Bible. It was one of the proudest moments of my life. I carried the American flag with dignity, honor and distinction.