An unsigned editorial in the Washington Times tells truths that most of the mainstream media prefer to ignore, and indeed do so: "EDITORIAL: Obama embraces Islam: If Islamism is OK for Egypt, why not America?" (hat tip - Robert Spencer):

The Obama administration is doing its utmost to promote the fortunes of the Islamist parties in Egypt. A State Department official declared that with the rise of these radical groups after the Arab Spring, "people who once might have gone into al Qaeda see an opportunity for a legitimate Islamism." They see this as a victory. The problem is, so do the terrorists.

ite House began peddling the line that the uprisings in the Middle East were a repudiation of the al Qaeda model of seeking change through terrorism. The argument was that while America opposed violent extremism, the rise of nonviolent radical movements was just fine, and even commendable. Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri quickly dismissed this claim, saying that from the terrorists' point of view, it didn't matter whether an Islamist victory came through violence or not. The means were unimportant except as they related to the end state: the imposition of hard-line Shariah-based laws and policies.

From Zawahri's point of view, it makes no difference whether the caliphate is born of the ballot, bomb or bullet. The important thing is the victory of Islamism, which the White House also seems to endorse.

The notion that there is a legitimate form of Islamism reflects a serious intellectual failing on the part of the Obama administration. President Obama seems to believe the Islamists are legitimized simply by participating in the political process. Some argue that the demands of electoral politics will moderate the Islamist parties, whose members will evolve from stern-eyed theocrats into social reformers. Others believe the only path to modernity is through embracing the Muslim Brotherhood's barbarous values....Read the whole thing here.

As the editorial goes on to appropriately point out, anyone who believes in the Western concept of freedom knows that Islamism by its nature cannot be legitimate. The White House needs to answer the question: If Islamism is a legitimate political movement, should it come to America, and if so, how soon?

Related: Obama Administration Courts the Muslim Brotherhood