Kristol: Obama Must Do More Than Watch Iran

What does Barack Obama intend to do to help the Iranian people? Watch them, mostly, writes William Kristol in the Weekly Standard. In a statement last week, Obama began by saying, “The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching.” He ended by promising to “continue to bear witness.” Does he really think Tehran cares that the world is watching? The regime only cared “what, if anything, the world would do.”

John F. Kennedy once said that the US would “bear any burden, meet any hardship … in order to assure the survival and success of liberty.” That’s a far cry from just keeping an eye on things. Obama’s UN ambassador even refused to side with Mousavi, saying Iran should “work it out internally.” Obama will, well, watch. Because “acting on behalf of justice—as opposed to talking about it—is hard.” (More Barack Obama stories.)