The auto-outrage detector of the right-wing establishment is blinking fiercely over an offhand remark made by President Obama yesterday. The President was delivering a detailed address about the Iran nukes deal in the hopes of persuading Congress to ratify it. He covered specifics including the prohibitions that would be imposed on Iran, the provisions for any breach of the agreement, and the consequences of not passing it in Congress. However, the entirety of Obama’s remarks were summarily dismissed by his wingnut critics so that they could hyperventilate over this:

“It’s those [Iranian] hard-liners chanting ‘death to America’ who have been most opposed to the [nukes] deal. They’re making common cause with the Republican caucus.”

That’s right. The President correctly pointed out that the hard-liners in the Republican Party, in opposing the nuke deal, are taking precisely the same position as the Ayatollahs in Iran. Granted for different reasons, but the factual basis is undeniable. Much of the motivation on the part of the GOP stems from their determination to oppose anything that comes out of this White House, no matter what the merits. And this isn’t the first time that Republicans and other conservatives in politics and the press, have sided with our enemies to satisfy their own political aspirations. Here are a few examples:

• Republicans declared their opposition to a UN Arms Trade treaty that would regulate the transfer of tanks, large-caliber artillery systems, combat aircraft, warships, missiles, etc., between member nations. There were only three votes against the treaty in the UN: Syria, Iran, and North Korea. Consequently, the GOP is aligning itself with three of the most brutally oppressive regimes in the world.
• Conservative media provides free advertising for terrorists, and they must stop it. While it is reasonable to report on the brutality that is being engaged in throughout the Middle East, and particularly in Iraq and Syria, there is no useful purpose in blanketing the airwaves with images created by terrorists for their own benefit.
• For several years now Fox News and other conservative media have feverishly demanded that President Obama explicitly associate terrorism with Islam. When you look at who is insisting that the terrorists be called Muslims you will see only the terrorists themselves, Fox News, and their political allies on the right. On the other side is Obama, religion and terrorism experts, and most of the world’s Muslims. So the real question here is why is Fox News and right-wing politicians joining with the terrorists in an effort to brand their heinous activities?

There are other areas of agreement between the American Taliban and foreign extremists. In fact, much of the agenda of the Islamic radicals is identical to the platform of the Republican Party. They both believe that religion should be the foundation of government. They are both virulently anti-gay. They would both enforce a submissive role for women who must not be permitted to make decisions about their own bodies. They both have a perverse obsession with guns. They both want to use education for indoctrination. They both refuse to accept settled questions of science. And they both advocate overthrowing the secular governments that they despise.

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Considering the array of similarities between these groups it is surprising that the right would make such a big deal about Obama’s comments. It only brings additional attention to the policy positions that they share. And the more they gripe about it the more people will be exposed to their repulsive ideological harmony.