Democrats vs. leaders of democracies
The party usually supportive of NATO breaks from it on Iran
It may be the biggest story the media has missed in recent days.
While U.S. Democrats overwhelmingly oppose the war in Iran, leaders of several democratic nations and NATO support it. Part of the problem is information warfare. People are only hearing part of the story.
In “covering” the outbreak of this war, the media skipped a step that used to be standard for American journalism.
I explain in the latest episode.
A new poll finds 44% of Americans support the U.S.-Israeli military operation, while 41% oppose it, The Hill reports. The split is overwhelmingly along partisan lines. Among Republicans, 82% support the war; among Democrats, it’s the inverse: 17% support.
In other contexts in recent years, Democrats have largely argued that the United States should listen to our allies. They’ve condemned Trump for abandoning our allies over Ukraine. Even self-declared “progressives” have become more supportive of NATO, the world’s leading security alliance that enshrines a commitment to democracy and democratic values in its founding documents.
From early on in this war, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte backed the military action.
Rutte said “Europe is ‘absolutely supportive’ of U.S. action in Iran,” the BBC reported. “Rutte emphasizes that Iran is a ‘threat’ to Europe, Israel and its surrounding region - as he adds that Europe is ‘really stepping up.’”
The Republican Party — usually less supportive of NATO — is aligned with it on this.
Canada, a country 95% of Democrats view positively, took a similar position.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is the principal source of instability and terror throughout the Middle East, has one of the world's worst human rights records, and must never be allowed to obtain or develop nuclear weapons,” Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement. “Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security.”
So did Australia — a country most Americans want as an ally.
“We have long recognized that Iran's nuclear program is a threat to global peace and security,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. “With international partners… we have called for the Iranian regime to uphold the human rights and fundamental freedoms of Iran's citizens. Sadly, these calls have gone unheeded and action has now been taken. We support the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent Iran from continuing to threaten international peace and security.”
They’re not alone. Poland, the Baltics (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), the Czech Republic and Romania openly stated their support as well. All these countries are democracies attempting to withstand pressure and threats from anti-democratic foes.
Meanwhile, nations leading calls against this war include U.S. foes Russia and China, both non-democratic communist governments.
Of course, not all democracies are on board. For example, India is in a tight spot, building alliances with the United States but also China and Russia. Just about all nations have their own strategic interests at stake. And expressions of support do not automatically translate into all of the concrete support the United States and Israel are looking for.
But against this backdrop, the staunch opposition of U.S. Democrats is a big story — one of many the legacy media is missing.
The 100th episode comes out tomorrow! Be sure to subscribe so it pops up in your inbox.
JL
P.S. ICYMI:
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