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President Barack Obama gave his first full-length sit down interview to the Saudi-financed Al-Arabiya satellite news channel. The interview can been seen here - in segments - on YouTube.

Al-Arabiya is the Arab language of choice for American officials. President Bush has appeared on the network several times, as has Vice-President Cheney, Secretary Rice, and General Peterus. The network is known for its pro-American bias and softball questions to American officials (that is why they prefer it over Al-Jazaeera), and many Middle Easterners see it as a Saudi effort to appease American criticisms of the Kingdom by acting as an outlet for America. Which raises the question, why is the U.S. Congress still funding to the tune of tens of millions a year the failed U.S. propaganda channel Al-Hurra? It’s a distant second to Al-Jazeera, so if Obama wanted to reach the widest possible Arab audience he settled for the wrong network.

Alexis de Tocqueville wrote about the American tendency to engage in excessive self-congratulation. That is what the American media is doing with Obama’s interview with Al-Arabiya. They, CNN et al, cannot stop gushing over the fact that Obama has given an interview to an Arab channel and how this will greatly improve America’s image in the Arab and Muslim world. Somebody needs to tell these people that 1) Bush and his team appeared on Arab television frequently themselves and 2) that America is judged by its deeds not any kind words it might insincerely dish out.

They’re excited over some of the language used by Obama. That the tone he is sending out will almost single-handedly change the image of America’s hand in the region. But George Bush also used a lot of the right words. Bush was the first American president to ever say the word “Palestine” and officially endorse an independent Palestinian state. Dick Cheney said that “a Palestinian state is long overdue” and Condi Rice stated that there isn’t a more noble legacy America could have than bringing about a Palestinian state. These were all the right words, but they didn’t aid America’s image because actions speak louder the words, pardon the cliche.

But what about the language? Obama spoke about the need for America to listen and not always dictate when dealing with the region. But Obama has never shown an interest in listening to Arabs and Muslims. In his summer campaign trip to Occupied Palestine/Israel Obama spent 45 minutes in Palestine where he ostensibly listened to the now-usurping President Mahmoud Abbas. Obama did not spend a second listening to Palestinians under occupation and their grievances. He did not visit any of the over 600 humiliating checkpoints that litter the West Bank and see what the Palestinians must confront everyday. Nor did he in Israel visit any Arab-Israeli town and as an African-American growing up in the United States speak to Arabs in Israel of a shared experience of discrimination. No, Obama did not care to listen then nor does he care to listen now. His 45 minutes in the occupied West Bank, where his convey whisked him from the Ramallah compound and back to Israel, was matched with 72 hours in Israel! No wonder that 70% of Palestinians in a poll agreed that Obama would be no different than Bush. Further, thorough out his entire campaign the “change” and “hope” candidate never once in a two-year tour of America visit a Arab or Muslim community center and rebuked the invitation to sit down with community leaders. If Obama wanted to listen he could have given Arab-Americans and Muslim-Americans at least an hour of his time. But he didn’t then and doesn’t want to now. Now he brings us his Muslim heritage, while during the campaign he ran away from any Muslim in site; even removing veiled women behind him. No, Mr. President, America is not about to listen.

Obama also stated that Israel’s security is “paramount”. You know what that means? It means that Israeli “security” must always trump Palestinian humanitarian concerns, because the superior Israelis are “paramount” in the mind of Obama over the inferior Palestinians. That is why Obama will not ask Israel to remove one of more than 600 checkpoints in the West Bank because Israel justifies this choke-hold on the grounds that they provide security for its 280,000 illegal settlers. So Palestinians must spend 2 1/2 hours going from two points that a few years back would have taken 15 minutes, and Obama will not protest because, well, because as the talking point goes Israel’s security is “paramount” over any Palestinian rights.

Obama also failed to understand what Palestine means for Arabs and Muslims. He disrespectfully, to play on a word he inversely belabored, and patronizingly portrayed the concerns of Arabs and Muslims are those than can be addressed by simply changing the economic conditions in the region. No, whether poor or rich Arabs will still care about Palestine. It is not about comfort level, I am well off Arab Muslim in America and I STILL care about Palestine. The Angry Arab captured it best:

Obama in talking about the Middle East–the Palestine question and beyond–suffers from an acute case of “economism” or economic reductionism. He has the tendency to reduce all Arab and Muslim issues to job and medical care. It is NOT only the economy–stupid. It is also about pride and dignity and Palestine AND about freedom from the severe oppression that people suffer under governments that are coddled and armed by the very same US of A. So the words fall hollow here.

President “uplifting” also had the temerity to assume the role, as he stated during the interview, as some sort of teacher on Islam for the American public and teach them that Muslims are, well, alright. If Obama really cared about confronting anti-Muslim prejudice he could have challenged the bigotry during the election campaign and answered the whisper campaign that he’s a secret Muslim by stating, “I am not a Muslim, but if I was that is more than okay because there is nothing wrong with being one.” Instead, he stood silent because he figured it was the more politically astute thing to do and his own website called bring a Muslim a “smear”. It was left to an honorable man, Colin Powell, to challenge such Islamophobia.

Obama will be no different than Bush on the Middle East. President Bush also showed courtesy towards Muslims. He visited a Mosque and hosted the first White House iftar [Ramadan fast-breaking dinner]. But Bush soiled America’s image because such gestures fall by the wayside when Arabs see the images from Palestine and then hear America’s unqualified support for the occupation and killing of Arab children. Obama is not going to improve America’s image because he won’t even slightly alter American’s foreign policy in the region. Whatever else he might say toward the Muslim world will be moot as the Palestinians continue to suffer.

If Obama really wants to build a new rapport between the Arab-Muslim world and the United States then he should wake up to the fact that Palestine is still under occupation, actually start listening, and instead of sitting down with al-Arabiya should sit down with his Palestine/Israel envoy George Mitchell and discuss how a two-state solution can be achieved. Otherwise, spare us, Arabs in the region and the disapore, the empty niceties.