The Muslim conundrum

Obama has painted himself into a corner. During the campaign he was downplaying his middle name and would even attack those who used it, calling them racists and accusing them of dirty politics.

But after January 20th he was back to using it to his advantage. His first interview was granted to al Jazeera. Then there were the greetings from the White House to Muslims world-wide on Islamic holy days.

And who can forget the praise he heaped upon Muslims when he spoke at Cairo University last summer?

But here we are with 13 dead soldiers, killed by a devout Muslim in the military. And things don’t look good. He’s quickly used up his, “Don’t jump to conclusions,” excuse and must now focus on the real victims.

Meanwhile, the story unfolds with government agencies looking the other way in an effort to ignore the clues. And they were very adept at ignoring them.

Just ten days ago it would have been completely plausible to use the shooter as a poster child for modern Muslims in America. He would be characterized as completely assimilated.

Sure, he worships at a mosque, but it is an “orthodox” one. Just look at how American he is. He goes to strip clubs, enjoys a beer, is a Major in the Army, and a doctor to boot. Oh, and he’s being deployed overseas in a few months.

What a great story for…oh 20/20, or Dateline, or 60 minutes, or maybe a PBS special.

You could juxtapose his success with snippets of Obama speeches about peaceful Islam.

And that is exactly the problem. Although he would be considered a mainstream Muslim, he was capable of a premeditated attack on unarmed military personnel.

Where does Obama go with this one? Regardless of his direction, he has some crow to eat. Failure to redefine his position will only make matters worse.