Beware of U.S. pundits and pols whitewashing the Muslim Brotherhood

And while MB leaders profess support for democracy and free speech, my mother’s response still holds: “They would say that, wouldn’t they?” What I see is that they’ve quieted their usual inflammatory rhetoric in return for Mubarak not banning them. It would be delusory to take the MB’s democratic protestations at face value. Look at who their friends are—like Hamas.

The real danger is that our experts, pundits and professors will talk the Arab and American worlds into believing we can all trust the MB. And that’s dangerous because, outside of the government, the MB is the only organized political force, the only group capable of taking power. And if they do gain control, it’s going to be almost impossible for the people to take it back. Just look at Iran…

Now, a final word about America’s power in this situation. We haven’t got any power to shape events. But that does not mean we are without influence. We have influence by virtue of the billions in aid we provide annually, by dint of years of positive contacts with the Egyptian government and business people, and the like. This means something. If the Obama administration leans to the protesters, that would embolden the protesters and demoralize Mubarak supporters. And mind you, those Americans screaming to support “the people” should understand that no matter how much President Obama sides with “the people,” few of them will thank him or America for it. And our soothsayers should also understand that when our other Arab friends watch us help remove Mubarak from power by not backing him, they’ll believe that they’ll be next on the list if they run into trouble. U.S. power would crumble in the region.