Making friends

Arab journalist Hussain Abdul-Hussain explains in the Huffington Post blog what's actually going on with U.S. policy towards the Mideast: "As Bush went out recruiting allies, and making enemies, Obama lost America's friends while failing to win over enemies."

Abdul-Hussain provides a sad litany of former friends, like the pro-democracy Lebanese, who have decided they'd better make peace with Syria because the United States won't back them up.

As for Iraq: "after losing more than 4,300 troops in battle and spending $700 trillion since 2003, America today cannot find a single politician or group that would express gratitude to Americans for ridding Iraq of its ruthless tyrant Saddam Hussein, and allowing these politicians to speak out freely.

On the contrary, shy of making their excellent backdoor ties with Washington known since they fear Obama will depart Iraq and never look back, Iraqi politicians started expressing dissatisfaction with the United States in public."

Nor has the United States fared better with its enemies: "Apparently, the benevolent Obama failed to impress America's number one enemy, Al-Qaeda.

Between September and December, the group sent a suicide bombers into New York and Michigan. The first was foiled, the second luckily failed."

Unfortunately, there are no signs that our policy toward the Mideast or the Muslim world is likely to change. (Thanks to Barry Rubin.)