Surprising as it may seem today, that effort mostly worked. Anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim political parties in Europe have stirred up a tremendous amount of Islamophobia there, and such attitudes naturally drive feelings of anger and betrayal. For a young man or woman on the edge, it can be just enough to push them into radicalization, and it’s not a coincidence that Europe has seen far more homegrown attacks. Yet we here in the U.S. seem to be barreling headlong for that same cliff.

For members of the national security community, Bush’s approach is 101-level strategy, which accounts for its longstanding bipartisan support. It’s why Bush refused to say “radical Islamic terror” and why President Barack Obama followed his lead. But with the rise of the ultra-conservative wing of the GOP, and the surge of presidential contenders like Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Ted Cruz, all of whom have demonized Muslims in one way or another, it is nearly a requirement for a GOP candidate to dog whistle, or worse, against Muslims. And voters have rewarded them: Trump, Carson and Cruz are now vying for the lead.

In his Oval Office address on Sunday night, Obama took aim at Islamophobia.

“We cannot turn against one another by letting this fight be defined as a war between America and Islam,” he said.