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Should we fear the
uprising in Egypt? American conservatives are caught up in an unusually
open argument about the crowds in Cairo.

“This isn’t about
Egypt,” said top-rated television personality Glenn Beck. “This is the
story of everyone who has ever plotted, or wanted, to fundamentally
change or destroy the Western way of life.” Beck is telling his
enormous audience that the protests against Hosni Mubarak are part of
an international Islamic resurgence sweeping all the way from Asia to
England. His opinions are among the most extreme in mainstream America
today, but there are a range of opinions about Egypt among Republicans
and others on the right.

“Only a child can
believe that a democratic outcome is inevitable,” writes conservative
columnist Charles Krauthammer “And only a blinkered optimist can
believe that it is even the most likely outcome.”

Broadly speaking,
members of President Barack Obama’s Democratic Party welcome the end of
dictatorship as complicated and potentially dangerous but inherently
desirable.

Obama’s stance
seems to have evolved since the demonstrations started; his latest word
is that the Mubarak regime should take prompt, careful steps to move
towards democracy. Most Republicans in Congress have quietly supported
the president’s position. But outside of Washington some prominent
Republicans are breaking ranks.

Influential
Republican strategist Newt Gingrich says the administration has been
naive about Egypt’s most popular opposition movement, because of its
roots in Islamic radicalism.

“The Muslim
brotherhood is a mortal enemy of our civilization,” he said. “This
administration, I think, does not have a clue about those realities.”
Like Gingrich, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin is considered a
possible presidential candidate. She says she’s disappointed that the
Obama administration hasn’t established what’s ahead in Egypt.

“Nobody yet has
explained to us – surely they know, more than the rest of us know – who
is going to take the place of Mubarak,” she said. “They know what’s
going on and aren’t telling us.” It’s not clear that the White House is
hiding anything. A lot of America’s plans are being unsettled
unexpectedly by the sudden upheaval in Egypt.

President Obama
clearly believes that the country and the region will benefit from more
democracy. American conservatives aren’t quite as convinced.

Jonathan Mann
presents Political Mann on CNN International each Friday at 18:30
(CAT), Saturday at 3pm and 9pm (CAT), and Sunday at 10am (CAT).