So Mr. Ahmedinejad, the President of Iran, requested that he be allowed to visit ground zero next week when he is in New York City to address the United Nations. His request was denied. The Police Commissioner made a boo-boo and announced that the request was under review. Then everyone and their mother raced to say that the request had been denied, like, forever ago…and that it was a really bad idea anyway.
Hillary Clinton:
It is unacceptable for Iranian President Ahmadinejad, who refuses to renounce and end his own country’s support of terrorism, to visit the site of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil in our nation’s history.
Rudy Guiliani:
Under no circumstances should the N.Y.P.D. or any other American authority assist President Ahmadinejad in visiting Ground Zero. This is a man who has made threats against America and Israel, is harboring Bin Laden’s son and other al Qaeda leaders, is shipping arms to Iraqi insurgents and is pursuing the development of nuclear weapons. Assisting Ahmadinejad in touring Ground Zero – hallowed ground for all Americans – is outrageous.
And the not to be outdone, Mitt Romney:
Ahmadinejad’s shockingly audacious request should be met with a vehement no. It’s inconceivable that any consideration would be given to the idea of entertaining the leader of a state sponsor of terror at ground zero. This would deeply offend the sensibilities of Americans from all corners of our nation. Instead of entertaining Ahmadinejad, we should be indicting him.
For the record, the request was officially denied for purely logistical reasons. You know…security.
On the best day politics will make you want to throw up. But this isn’t just any day. We lost an effort to restore habeas corpus rights and we lost an effort to force a draw down in troop levels in Iraq.
Now, I don’t have any love lost for Mr. Ahmedinejad. I think he is a world class a-hole. And he doesn’t have any special right to an expensive security detail so he can tour lower Manhattan. Moreover, some of his actions and comments have been deeply hurtful and angering and even fearsome to the Jewish community. And he represents a regime that has been implicated in many serious terrorist attacks against American interests and American allies. (I know that is only one side of the story…believe me…I know).
Under the circumstances, I don’t have a problem with denying him a chance to visit ground zero. If I were a politician, I would be reluctant to accommodate him. But this oneupmanship is really unseemly. We really need to stop and consider, every once in a while, how our actions are perceived in the world.
The whole world knows that neo-conservatives, including the vice-president of the United States, are frothing at the mouth to bomb this man’s country into the stone ages. The world does not agree with that plan. The world is deeply, deeply unsympathetic to that plan. And here this man comes, to make an ostensibly good-faith gesture and to pay respects to our dead. Maybe he wants to help himself understand the magnitude of the tragedy so he can better understand why his country is under such a threat.
Is it really a ‘good faith’ gesture? Maybe not. Maybe it is just a stunt to make him look good. One thing is for sure…denying him the opportunity doesn’t make us look good.
It’s one thing to thank him politely for the kind gesture and then deny him the trip on security grounds. That’s diplomacy. People would understand that. But to have all the presidential candidates lining up to outdo each other in their outrage at the mere suggestion? It’s gross. It’s ugly. It’s the worst of America.
