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Hertzberg writing on the crackpot letter from Iran and the opportunity it would have presented to an administration capable of articulating what it is that makes us different from the mullahs.

One can imagine a letter from an American President. It would go beyond nuclear warnings to ask a few questions of its own—questions about the Iranian regime’s suppression of freedom of expression, routine use of torture, domination by unelected clerics, and persecution of ethnic and religious minorities. It would refute, in detail, Ahmadinejad’s ugly fantasies about the Holocaust and 9/11, which are common currency among parts of the Muslim public.

Much of Ahmadinejad’s letter is devoted to religious hectoring, culminating in an appeal to Bush’s faith. The Iranian President writes that he has “been told that Your Excellency follows the teachings of Jesus (Peace Be Upon Him) and believes in the divine promise of the rule of the righteous on Earth.” One can imagine an American President responding that he believes in the rule of the people, righteous and unrighteous alike, exercised through democratic institutions. It’s a little harder to imagine that response from this particular American President. But one can dream.

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