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Laura Bush Visits Mid-East, Gets Criticism as Souvenir
In general, spouses and children of politicians are out of bounds when it comes to political attacks. Betty Ford’s chemical dependencies were not fair game for critics of the Ford White House, Lady Thatcher’s vicious regime should never have been attacked because of Sir Denis Thatcher’s love of golf and gin (there were so many legitimate reasons), and no gentleman would attack Mrs. Laura Bush for her husband’s policies. However, she stepped into the ring on her recent trip to the Middle East, and got a fair dose of criticism – and it was deserved.
First Ladies can be very powerful women (Eleanor Roosevelt springs to mind), but the key to that power is to take on non-partisan issues to utilize the media attention that the wife of the world’s most powerful man can attract. Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” attack on drugs was a silly and ineffective thing, but no one could say that encouraging kids to take drugs was a good idea; there weren’t two sides to the issue. Mrs. Bush, to her credit, has made a big deal out of children learning to read. As she reminded everyone as she visited the site of Alexandria’s ancient library, she was once a librarian – and apart from authors, no one has a greater professional interest in literacy.
However, during her visit to Jordan, Israel and Egypt, she made some comments about democracy coming to the region that just didn’t ring true to some of her Arab hosts.
President Mubarak is very popular in Egypt, he’s very well liked, and it’s very important for him, as well as for the country, as well as an example for the rest of the countries in the broader Middle East to show that Egypt can have free and fair elections.
Mohamed Habib, deputy leader of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood, replied, "There are no reform steps at all. The regime is still following the dictatorial and repressive method towards the Egyptian people and opposition." Mazen Mustafa of the liberal Ghad Party, echoed these feelings, “We feel the speed is not even slow, but even backwards sometimes. I don't think Mrs. Bush represents the administration, and she is not aware of the government's low maneuvers."
Unfortunately, Mr. Mustafa is gallant but wrong about her representing the administration; the president’s wife says only those things that underscore the White House line or she says nothing at all. Mohamed Elwan of the liberal Wafd Party, explained why she has lost some of her influence by parroting the Karl Rove line, "What she said matters to the rulers because it is in the hands of foreigners to keep them in their positions. Dictatorial and despotic regimes are always backed by foreign interests because they are more responsive to the outside world than if they were democracies."
Mrs. Bush didn’t hurt America’s image abroad on her trip, and she may have softened the rough edges of the administration in the eyes of some in the Arab world. For that, the nation should be grateful. At the same time, though, she has frittered away some of her own standing in the very same region by wearing rose-colored glasses. She appeared naïve or ill-informed to many Egyptians – the quintessential American, which does her no good for future efforts.
© Copyright 2005 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent.
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