Obama’s first favorability ratings came out this week, and just like during the transition, they were extraordinarily high. This, of course, is an enormous advantage for Obama when it comes to getting bills through Congress-the legislators with a 20% approval rating are going to have to bend to demands from the man with a 70% approval rating-but the real benefits of Obama’s popularity may lie outside the borders of the United States.  And there is no better example of that than Iran.

Reaction from Iranian citizens to Obama’s election have been upbeat:

For now, though, most people in Tehran seemed relieved by Obama’s victory, and hope that he will live up to his name, literally, and improve relations. “Soon I’ll be visiting you in the U.S.,” my grocery storekeeper declared with a huge grin. “As soon as there is an embassy here,” he added, “I’ll be the first to apply for a visa.”

 

That certainly doesn’t sound like the usual “Death to America” shouting we see on TV. Then, two days ago, President Obama gave his first TV interview since becoming the President (foreign or domestic) to the television network Al-Arabiya, that reaches 23 million viewers, exclusively in the Mideast.

My job is to communicate the fact that the United States has a stake in the well-being of the Muslim world, that the language we use has to be a language of respect. I have Muslim members of my family. I have lived in Muslim countries.

My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy.

We’re going to follow through on our commitment for me to address the Muslim world from a Muslim capital. We are going to follow through on many of my commitments to do a more effective job of reaching out, listening, as well as speaking to the Muslim world.

To the broader Muslim world what we are going to be offering is a hand of friendship.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is up for election in a few months (yes, they actually have elections) and while George Bush’s popularity was in the tank for a long time preceding our election, curiously so was Ahmadinejad’s. Another relieved Iranian speculated to Time:

With Obama in charge, many now see real prospects for U.S.-Iran rapprochement, especially if a reformist or moderate President takes up the job here in June. “If [ former reformist President Mohammed] Khatami should decide to run,” said a 33-year-old beautician, “it’s a done deal.”

As Jon Stewart often points out, the outrageous statements coming from Ahmadinejad the last few years, like the “Holocaust is a lie” or how he wants to “wipe Israel off the map,” are the same ignorant fear mongering that George Bush used to employ when he would call Iran the “axis of evil,” or threaten to bomb their country every other day. They were very different words directed at very different audiences, but the goal is the same to play to their political base. They both used their own inflamed rhetoric not for diplomatic purposes, but preserve their political power.

And the Obama Administration’s overtures towards dialogue and peace has the potential to be the death blow to Ahmadinejad’s administration as much as it was to Bush’s. Remember Iran has a very young population (In 2003, it was estimated 70% of their population is under 30) who are often more reform minded. They are known for listening to American music and watch our movies, so much so, that it causes some to wonder why they would have such a reactionary leader in Ahmadinejad. Well, that reason left the White House at about noon on January 20^th.

It is important to note that Obama went out of his way in the Al-Arabiya interview to single out the people of Iran. “The Iranian people are a great people and the Persian civilization is a great civilization,” he said.

In other words, we got rid of our George Bush, so now they can get rid of theirs.

Trevor Timm is a Blast Magazine staff writer