Terrorism: Repubs Point To Islamic Extremists, Dems Won’t
A divide is emerging on the presidential campaign trail over battling terrorists: how exactly to label the fight. While Democrats tend to talk about terrorism in general, Republicans increasingly pin the threat directly on Islam.
All the major Republican candidates regularly weave some form of the phrase “Islamic extremism” into their stump speeches. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has taken the rhetoric to a new level, running a television advertisement about “this century’s nightmare, jihadism.”
Democratic candidates generally don’t emphasize linking Islam and terrorism. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton talks more of “global terrorism,” while Sen. Barack Obama refers to “stateless terrorism.”
“In four Democratic debates, not a single Democratic candidate said the word ‘Islamic terrorism,’ ” former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said at a Republican debate. “Now that is taking a political correctness to extremes.”
Those who like the Republican candidates’ choice of language say it reflects the reality of who threatens America the most. “Everybody ought to call an ace an ace,” says Jim Gorsh, a 62-year-old retiree who heard Mr. Romney speak in Clinton, Iowa, earlier this month.
Others, including some Arab-American groups, say the constant references to Islamic terrorists, even if meant to refer only to a single radical strand of Islam, may end up tarring the entire religion. After a group of conservative academics declared last week “Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week,” David Halperin, a senior vice president at the Democratic-leaning think tank Center for American Progress, criticized the effort. “To continue to harp on the idea that Islamo-fascism is the source of terrorism is to suggest that all Muslims are terrorists,” Mr. Halperin said.
The Republican tone might alienate Arab-American voters, says James Zogby, founder and president of the Arab American Institute, a Washington-based advocacy group. There are about 3.5 million Arab-Americans in the U.S., according to Dr. Zogby, and they make up as much as 7% of the electorate in one key state, Michigan. “People are quite startled and frightened” by the Republican phraseology, he said.
Full WSJ article by Elizabeth Holmes here.
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Well now, the Dems wouldn’t want to make their constituents, Islamic extremists, mad, would they?
October 30th, 2007 at 9:30 am“People are quite startled and frightened” by the Republican phraseology, he said.”
WTF? Crashing airliners into buildings, suicide bombers, beheading of American’s, and various sundry plots to destroy western culture are of no consequence to this idiot?
The demo-c-rats are worse than any other enemy of the US.
October 30th, 2007 at 10:45 amThe Irish Republican Army is Catholic, I never thought they were talking about me. People may have heard of Mayor Rizzo of Philadelphia. During one of his runs for mayor he said he’s going to lock up all the criminals. They labeled him a racist. He didn’t say he was going to lock up all the blacks. Well, most of the criminals are black in the city, they’re the ones that shoot each other everyday then and today. And mooslums are the only ones that blow themselves up everyday somewhere in the world. The kamikazees have been dead for over 60 years. What are you all getting your panties in a bunch over?
October 30th, 2007 at 10:56 amI just wanted to clarify my last sentence. Why are you democrats getting you panties in a bunch.
October 30th, 2007 at 4:54 pmJohn;
Clarifying your clarification, that would be, “… your panties …”.
October 30th, 2007 at 8:34 pmFurther clarification: “… in a bunch?”
October 30th, 2007 at 8:35 pm