The urge to yammer
Toolbox
Published: June 25, 2009
Republicans who have been pressuring President Obama to toughen his rhetoric on Iran prompt the following question: Would harsh criticism of the Iranian regime be do any good or would it be an act of self-indulgence meant to make U.S. leaders feel heroic and important?
President Bush demonstrated over and over again that bluster and threats generally work contrary to U.S. interests — alienating friends and adversaries, cutting short negotiations, leaving U.S. policymakers with a diminishing number of options. Bush's with-us-or-against-us language and his readiness to condemn first and talk later isolated and weakened the United States.
It is clear that Obama is trying to heed the advice of Teddy Roosevelt to talk softly and carry a big stick. He has answered critics of his policy of restraint by saying it is important not to play into the hands of the Iranian leadership by appearing to take sides during the present unrest. A blessing by the United States would probably be the kiss of death for Mir Hossein Mousavi, challenger in the presidential election.
Obama said he was "appalled and outraged" at the beatings and killings in Tehran, and he called the death, on camera, of an Iranian woman "heartbreaking." The Iranian government knows the world is watching, and reports from Iran suggest that the once monolithic power of the ruling clerics is now facing challenges from within as well as on the streets.
It is an axiom in politics that when your opponent is self-destructing, it is best to get out of the way. The Iranian regime's obdurate course following the sketchy election results may be a form of self-destruction that is opening the door to greater democracy there. This is an Iranian process, and those who cherish democracy and freedom have high hopes that what emerges will be better both for the Iranian people and the world.
Already, experts on the region suggest that Iran has been weakened by the uprising ignited by the flawed election. Clients of Iran such as Hamas in Palestine and Syria may conclude that the regime is not such a dependable patron and move toward greater accommodation with Israel. Now, as Iran is losing friends, is not the time for the United States to help Iran gain friends through excessive hostility.
At the same time it is necessary for the United States to recognize, as the world has recognized, the harsh actions taken by the Iranian regime. Bearing witness to the violence on the streets of Tehran is a way of giving meaning to the martyrdom of innocent protesters.
Obama is walking a fine line. Acquiescence to tyranny is not in the interest of the United States or of democracy. Our acquiescence to, or even assistance to, the tyranny of the shah of Iran laid the groundwork for the Iranian revolution of 1979. And yet the United States as international blowhard worsened conditions in Iran, Iraq, Korea, Pakistan and elsewhere during the Bush administration. The so-called axis of evil did not quake in its boots when Bush denounced it. Real power — the power of our ideals, our economy, our culture and our military — works better when the volume of our self-righteousness is turned down.
Obama is feeling the pressure from all sides to show greater toughness. On financial reform, health care, energy, and now in diplomacy, his conciliatory instincts lead him to look for consensus and compromise. His entire political career has been built on his ability to reach across party lines and to transcend the divisions that keep people apart. And yet on these tough issues, his leadership also requires, when appropriate, the decision to remain loyal to crucial principles.
His conciliatory instincts led him to create a new opening to Iran. He must remain firm as a defender of human rights and as a witness to the brutality in Tehran, but he must also remain loyal to his long-term goals of luring Iran into the community of nations and curbing its nuclear ambitions. If yammering at the Iranians about their failings would be counterproductive, the stronger thing to do would be to resist the urge to yammer.
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