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Shadi Hamid
Senior fellow @BrookingsInst; Contributing editor @TheAtlantic; Author #IslamicExceptionalism. Find my books here: https://t.co/7ixbCJfu9Z
When people say we just need to go back to normal (i.e. pre-Trump), they misread the political situation so fundamentally it takes my breath away. It was "normal" that gave us Trump in the first place. Normal isn't good enough, and that's why the center won't—and shouldn't—hold
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I get that people are skeptical of something new. There's been a bipartisan foreign policy "consensus" for decades now. But if that consensus failed us on Middle East, Russia, Afghanistan, Iraq, China, etc. then at some point there should be an openness to try something different
At some point, if pundits and "mainstream" commentators keep getting so many things wrong for years on end, I mean, there should at the very least be some introspection
Too many in the Democratic "establishment" can barely contain their disdain for democracy, and it didn't start yesterday. These are Democrats who prefer the "right" outcomes over democratic outcomes. They see voters as an inconvenient obstacle to their own power and dominance
If you happen to be in South Carolina this Tuesday night, I'll be speaking at @FurmanU on "Can Liberalism Survive in an Age of Populism?" Details here:
@Steven_Strauss @mattjj89h @haselbysame wasn't the centrist candidate in primaries. Also, policy positions aren't the best way to determine level of "progressivism. " And I've always been uncomfortable with looking at specific policies, since, empirically, we know that voters don't generally vote on policy specifics
We know empirically that voters don't tend to vote on policy, as I discuss here: If your argument is that voters will be spooked by Bernie's "socialist" policies, then your starting assumption might be faulty which means your entire analysis will be faulty
We have an early contender for best song of 2020 "Lilac" from Brighton's @porridgeradio is perhaps the perfect anthem: defiant, rousing, and just plain beautiful, especially as it builds towards one of the more moving crescendos I've heard in years
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I see Ilhan Omar being attacked in some conservative circles for not denouncing Al Qaeda. Her response was the correct one—she refused to dignify it with an answer. No American Muslim should have to spell out that they're anti-Al Qaeda. It should be the starting presumption
Last night, my Uber driver Mohamed told me "Merry Christmas" without shame or apology. Emboldened, I replied, "Merry Christmas." And it dawned on me. Donald Trump had won, but in the process we all had won. Our country was changing, and we didn't even realize it, at least not yet
For a lot of us, this wasn't just normal politics. It was about the safety of our families and communities. That's why it's really scary
The pictures of Pompeo grinning, smiling, and laughing with the crown prince—as if a journalist wasn't just murdered—are remarkable. Not only is it bad policy; it's downright embarrassing. It makes Pompeo look like an unserious pushover. It's really indefensible on any grounds
I shouldn't be surprised, but it's sort of amazing to me how many Americans (on Twitter) seem to think America is a uniquely evil force in world affairs. Is it a white privilege thing? I don't know. But at some point it devolves from well deserved self-critique into pathology
1. Initially I was on the fence, but the more I consider different scenarios, the more the original alarmist takes seem even more wrong than I first suspected. The WW3 stuff is obviously silly, but even the risk of "mere" war seems increasingly unlikely
I want to be careful with how I phrase this, but Pompeo's Cairo speech was one of the worst foreign policy speeches I've witnessed from a senior U.S. official. It was cynical, petty, incoherent, small, and, well, silly
This actually happened in a State Department press briefing
This is what a "burqini" looks like. Apparently, this piece of clothing is the most urgent threat to French security
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