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American Morning

Spreading Democracy

Aired November 07, 2003 - 09:36   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: So then the question is, how difficult is it to reach that goal? And is it the right thing for the U.S.? And is it the right thing for the Middle East? Fawaz Gerges, professor of Middle East Studies at Sarah Lawrence College back with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
Great to see you, and a very interesting topic here. You've spoken with people half a world away. What are they saying? What's the reaction from the speech?

FAWAZ GERGES, SARAH LAWRENCE COLLEGE: Well, I mean, on the one hand, you have some reformists in the Muslim world who fear that too much American involvement in the Democratic project could undermine the efforts to promote liberalization from within. That is they're afraid too much American involvement. On the other hand, I would argue, the majority would argue, that this was a very highly enlightened and nuanced speech. I think the president himself, allies now, the United States, with you might say civil society as opposed to dictatorships. And I think the president was very sensitive to local sensibilities and also local cultures.

The question is, Bill, will the president translate this enlightened rhetoric into concrete policies?

HEMMER: Back to the question, is this headlines right now in the Middle East? Or is it somewhere on page two or three, or maybe even not there?

GERGES: It's big news, first page.

HEMMER: Why?

GERGES: Because remember, you have the question of Iraq, you have the question of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. And the United States is the greatest power in the world. The United States is not seen, Bill, as an external player in the Middle East, but rather as an internal player that influences the lives of Middle Easterns and Muslims.

HEMMER: Just to have the conversation, is that healthy? Is that pushing the ball forward, as we like to say?

GERGES: I think what we need to understand here is that the United States now seems to have replaced the so-called shock tactics and missionary zeal with a gradual, peaceful approach. And I think we need to understand, even though the president was trying to justify and respond to criticisms of his policies in Iraq, I think the speech itself really addresses the big issue. How will the United States help reformists push forward the Democratic project?

HEMMER: It would be very naive of us to sit here and say this is something that could be done in a year. I mean yesterday in the speech, it was this is a decades-long commitment that the United States has to offer toward the Middle East. You say it was inspirational. Overall reaction positive. There were some who were saying that this was the equivalent of "tear down this wall," Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s. That's a bold statement. Would you go even close to that statement?

GERGES: No, I would not do that. Because bill, democracy, democratizing the Middle East will take decades. And, in fact, history will be kind to this president if he plants the seeds, the seeds of democracy in the Middle East.

But the big question on the table is the following, will the president continue to exert pressure on America's allies in order to structurally reform? Will the president push for a just settlement on Palestinian/Israeli conflict. Will the president replace the logic of military occupation in Iraq with the logic of an elective legislative (ph) authority. Because after all, if we believe in democracy, Bill, we must take risks on people's choices. Let's take risks on Iraqi's choices.

HEMMER: We'll all wait and see. It could be years. We'll watch. Fawaz Gerges, thanks. Great to see you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired November 7, 2003 - 09:36   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: So then the question is, how difficult is it to reach that goal? And is it the right thing for the U.S.? And is it the right thing for the Middle East? Fawaz Gerges, professor of Middle East Studies at Sarah Lawrence College back with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
Great to see you, and a very interesting topic here. You've spoken with people half a world away. What are they saying? What's the reaction from the speech?

FAWAZ GERGES, SARAH LAWRENCE COLLEGE: Well, I mean, on the one hand, you have some reformists in the Muslim world who fear that too much American involvement in the Democratic project could undermine the efforts to promote liberalization from within. That is they're afraid too much American involvement. On the other hand, I would argue, the majority would argue, that this was a very highly enlightened and nuanced speech. I think the president himself, allies now, the United States, with you might say civil society as opposed to dictatorships. And I think the president was very sensitive to local sensibilities and also local cultures.

The question is, Bill, will the president translate this enlightened rhetoric into concrete policies?

HEMMER: Back to the question, is this headlines right now in the Middle East? Or is it somewhere on page two or three, or maybe even not there?

GERGES: It's big news, first page.

HEMMER: Why?

GERGES: Because remember, you have the question of Iraq, you have the question of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. And the United States is the greatest power in the world. The United States is not seen, Bill, as an external player in the Middle East, but rather as an internal player that influences the lives of Middle Easterns and Muslims.

HEMMER: Just to have the conversation, is that healthy? Is that pushing the ball forward, as we like to say?

GERGES: I think what we need to understand here is that the United States now seems to have replaced the so-called shock tactics and missionary zeal with a gradual, peaceful approach. And I think we need to understand, even though the president was trying to justify and respond to criticisms of his policies in Iraq, I think the speech itself really addresses the big issue. How will the United States help reformists push forward the Democratic project?

HEMMER: It would be very naive of us to sit here and say this is something that could be done in a year. I mean yesterday in the speech, it was this is a decades-long commitment that the United States has to offer toward the Middle East. You say it was inspirational. Overall reaction positive. There were some who were saying that this was the equivalent of "tear down this wall," Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s. That's a bold statement. Would you go even close to that statement?

GERGES: No, I would not do that. Because bill, democracy, democratizing the Middle East will take decades. And, in fact, history will be kind to this president if he plants the seeds, the seeds of democracy in the Middle East.

But the big question on the table is the following, will the president continue to exert pressure on America's allies in order to structurally reform? Will the president push for a just settlement on Palestinian/Israeli conflict. Will the president replace the logic of military occupation in Iraq with the logic of an elective legislative (ph) authority. Because after all, if we believe in democracy, Bill, we must take risks on people's choices. Let's take risks on Iraqi's choices.

HEMMER: We'll all wait and see. It could be years. We'll watch. Fawaz Gerges, thanks. Great to see you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com