On foreign policy, Romney is a brain-dead follower of the establishment

Barry Rubin, after praising the “strength” of Romney’s speech on the Middle East, repeatedly points out that Romney’s policy is not sufficiently different from Obama’s policy for the average voter to understand the difference. Also, like Obama, Romney never mentions Islam, jihadism, etc., as the problem, but just “violent extremists.”

But what is Rubin’s own policy? At one point he says,

This suggests that Romney “gets it,” regarding the need to support real moderate or at least anti-Islamist forces.

So does Rubin also believe, with the neocons and Romney, that Muslim democracy can be guided or manipulated or jiggered by us into a shape that we will like, if only we give enough support to the Muslim secular liberals and moderates?

Answer: he does not. As a further reading of Mr. Rubin’s writings indicates, his position is not about promoting Muslim democracy. He advocates helping moderate governments and other moderate forces that oppose radical Islamists and that have common interests with the United States.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at October 09, 2012 01:56 PM | Send