Red Flags from Mumbai—Will American Liberals Heed Warnings?

When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assumed power in India in 2004, one of the first steps his administration implemented was to weaken the anti-terrorism laws on the books. Singh's concern was that innocent Muslims were being victimized by government discrimination. Since then, India has been hit by a series of terrorist attacks, culminating with the crisis in Mumbai which cost five Americans their lives.

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Clearly, terrorism is still a major global threat, protestations by American liberals notwithstanding. How will the horrors of Mumbai impact President-elect Obama's plans to shut down Guantanamo Bay? How about his plans to retreat from Iraq? Will America's arsenal against terror become kinder and gentler, where talks without pre-conditions replace military force as the primary defense strategy? Will Barney Frank succeed in cutting the defense budget by 25 percent? Will Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid work to "kill the Patriot Act" as he did two years ago? Will Speaker Nancy Pelosi continue to work against the best interests of America, even if unwittingly? India's political landscape may be dramatically altered by the tragedy in Mumbai. Will Obama, Pelosi, and Reid duplicate the errors in judgment made by the Singh administration in India, leading to tragedy in America?