The Challenges Facing the Next President
An overflow crowd of Brandeis students, faculty, and alumni packed Rapaporte Treasure Hall on Sept. 6 to hear some of the university’s foremost scholars of the Middle East discuss challenges that the region will pose to the next U.S. president.
Abdel Monem Said Aly, a senior research fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies, outlined "Ten Commandments" for a new president who wants to improve on the record of the Bush administration — including advice that the next chief executive not throw out all of Bush’s policies.
Naghmeh Sohrabi, the center’s assistant director for research, said the new president should adopt a policy toward Iran that would deprive the economically failing regime there of the ability to justify itself of national security grounds.
Shai Feldman, the Judith and Sidney Swartz Director of the center, warned that no president will be able to enlist the help of governments in the Middle East if those governments feel threatened by U.S. advocacy of greater democracy in the region.
The program was the latest in the Brandeis Spotlight on Middle East Issues and Campaign ’08 series.