On June 4th Obama Will Address the Muslim World: What he Should — and Shouldn’t — Say.

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The last time President Obama made a highly publicized overseas trip, he was called “soft” and “apologetic,” and Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren likened the voyage to “study abroad.” OK, props to Van Susteren – that’s hilarious.

The first trip, however, took place in Obama’s first 100 days, a time when, in my eyes, a little PR is just fine and even necessary. As Bush’s successor, President Obama is faced with some major challenges, one of which is to reinstate a positive United States image overseas. Although on his last trip Obama did not garner the support he was hoping for from NATO with regard to his mission in Afghanistan, Democrats and Obama supporters still argued that the trip was a success in that he improved the reputation of the United States abroad, which would lead to future support of US policy by its allies and the international arena. As I wrote in a “First 100 Days” piece for Fox Forum, this game was still Obama’s to lose.

Now, however, we’re far past the 100 day mark and you can almost feel the Obama Administration’s urgency in passing legislation and policy. They’re aware that they cannot just be a White House of perfect PR (and “perfect PR” is a stretch anyway when the Vice President is most often referred to as a loose cannon.) In Washington today, Obama called the next few months “key” in legislating a new health care system. Almost simultaneously, in Minnesota, Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty announced that he would not run for a third term, lending to suspicion that he is considering a 2012 presidential run. We’re already talking about the next election? The Obama Administration knows that it’s time for policy-making and enacting the actual change that Obama’s presidential campaign called for, and Obama’s trip to Egypt to talk to the “Muslim world” will be scrutinized with that in mind.

Obama’s speech in Cairo on June 4th, where he plans to address the United States relationship to Muslims, has already received criticism and Air Force One hasn’t even touched down yet. Some are hailing Cairo as the wrong place to give a speech to the “Muslim world,” and that speaking there seems to equate Arabs and Muslims when only 15-20% of the world’s Muslims are, in fact, Arab. Perhaps the speech would be more suitable in Indonesia, where a larger number of Muslims reside, and where Obama grew up at an early age. That said, attempting to garner substantial support from Egypt and Saudi Arabia is a significantly smart and strategic move by the Obama administration as those two nation-states will be integral to enacting US policy in the region.

Another obstacle that Obama will encounter is the fact that his presidential campaign suggested to many (including those in the Muslim world) that we would be pulling out of Iraq at an expedited rate. Obama’s newest policy calls for 50,000 troops to remain in Iraq for the foreseeable future, not to mention a more active approach to Afghanistan. As prominent Al Qaeda leader Al Zawahri stated today, “Muslims have already received President Obama’s bloody messages” and the Muslim Brotherhood has called Obama’s trip to Egypt “useless.”

What Obama needs to do in Egypt is to find the right mix of his usual smooth-talking that will win over the moderates in the audience, while reassuring the rest that United States policy will take aggressive action to remove more troops from Iraq. No matter what the President says with regard to the quagmire of Israeli-Palestinian relations, he will ignite ire from factions both in the United States and in the Muslim world. However, given that this Egypt trip is being looked at as his chance to lay down policy rather than attempt to coax the Muslim world with his words, he would be best advised to say something substantive on the matter, even if not a major policy decision.

In addition, there is some evidence to suggest that groups like Al Qaeda, Islamic Jihad and other extremist groups are losing power because they have not provided domestic solutions for the populations of the countries they inhabit. If Obama can spell out policies that would aid people in their daily lives, whether in policy with regard to the economy, health, technology, or education, he will be a big winner among much of his audience.

Finally, throughout his speech, President Obama must be very careful not to sound “apologetic” or soft when talking to the Muslim world. Soft and sensitive words that make him look like he was an innocent senator while the evil Bush Administration fired at the Middle East will not win him points at home or abroad. While Obama’s non-islamofascism is a welcomed departure from the words of his predecessor, the world is now watching to see if he can walk the way he talks, and to witness what he and his administration will “do.” While PR bought him some smiles (and some time) in the first 100 days, it will only buy him criticism and accusations of softness and inexperience now.