With Arabs, Obama never had a honeymoon

The Christian Science Monitor ^ | May 20, 2009 | Howard LaFranchi

[forkinsocket]

Washington - As President Obama prepares for the highly anticipated speech he will deliver to the Muslim world from Cairo in early June, new polling from Arab countries suggests he has his work cut out for him.

Only a small percentage of Arabs appear to have been won over by Barack Obama. There has been some slight improvement in US standing during the past year, based in part on the departure of President Bush and in part on Obama's policies, such as announcing a withdrawal from Iraq and a desire to shutter the Guantánamo detention facility. But one new poll suggests that America's "negatives" remain high in Egypt and Jordan in particular, as well as Saudi Arabia.

And when Arabs are asked to name the world leader they most admire, the new American president with "Hussein" for a middle name does not even figure on their list, according to a second poll. By contrast, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, a renowned anti-American iconoclast, sits atop that list.

Arabs "are listening, they are hopeful – [but] they are not in love," says Shibley Telhami, a professor of Mideast affairs at the University of Maryland and principal investigator for one of the polls, the annual Arab Public Opinion Survey.

While Obama's negatives are considerably lower among Arabs than Mr. Bush's were, his positives are generally low. This sets the Arab world, roughly defined as the Middle East and norther Africa, decidedly apart from other regions of the world. Western Europe, for example, has enthusiastically embraced Obama.

[forkinsocket]

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[kromike]

But...but...but...The First Muslim gave us his Super-Duper Promise that, if elected, he would unite the Muslim World.

Oh wait. I thought he meant "with us", not "against us." Silly me.

[Recovering Hermit]

...such as announcing a withdrawal from Iraq and a desire to shutter the Guantánamo detention facility.

Then they'll be really pissed once they realize that both of these campaign promises aren't going to happen any time soon.

Obama's getting some hard lessons on being CIC.

[2banana]

Unless he surrenders America, allows America's daughters to be taken as sex slaves and coverts to islam on stage, the muslims will not be satisfied...

[Red Dog #1]

“By contrast, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, a renowned anti-American iconoclast, sits atop that list.”

And still, many can't grasp why that region of the world is a failure.

[abclily]

Arabs do not have a lot of respect for black Africans. Doesn’t Obama realize this?

[SaraJohnson]

Obama lied; people died.