These are passages from an important news article from the Chicago Tribune (linked to Huffington Post). I'll give a brief commentary, below.
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Barack Obama plans to reach out to Muslim world
In exclusive interview, he says he plans to be sworn in like every other president, using his full name: Barack Hussein Obama
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Barack Obama says his presidency is an opportunity for the U.S. to renovate its relations with the Muslim world, starting the day of his inauguration and continuing with a speech he plans to deliver in an Islamic capital.
And when he takes the oath of office Jan. 20, he plans to be sworn in like every other president, using his full name: Barack Hussein Obama.
"I think we've got a unique opportunity to reboot America's image around the world and also in the Muslim world in particular,'' Obama said Tuesday, promising an "unrelenting" desire to "create a relationship of mutual respect and partnership in countries and with peoples of good will who want their citizens and ours to prosper together."
The world, he said, "is ready for that message."
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Obama said the country must take advantage of a unique chance to recalibrate relations around the globe, through a new diplomacy that emphasizes inclusiveness and tolerance as well as an unflinching stand against terrorism.
"The message I want to send is that we will be unyielding in stamping out the terrorist extremism we saw in Mumbai," Obama said, adding that he plans to give a major address in an Islamic capital as part of his global outreach.
Though world events and economic winds have made his agenda all the more challenging, Obama kept close counsel on how he plans to move forward.
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Schmookler commentary:
Obama has a plan for how to "reset" America's relationship with the Islamic world. He --or someone with his ear-- has had the vision to see that Obama's taking over from Bush represents a real opportunity for unleashing transformational energy to make the world more whole.
The sight and message of Obama --America's first black president, with Muslims in his heritage and Hussein as his middle name, and expressing a vision for piece (combined with the determination to protect ourselves from those who would attack us)-- could indeed have a powerful impact on world affairs.
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