[Turkey's former ambassador to the United States, Faruk Loğoğlu] is appalled--like many in Turkey--by the soft-headedness of the Obama' Administration's diplomacy in this region. He finds Obama's speeches about his personal warmth toward Islam ludicrous and inappropriate. “Obama can’t play the religious game," he said. "He should be playing the security game. His policy toward Turkey is a bad imitation of the worst parts of Orientalism.”
Face it, a Christian American president can't out-Moslem other Moslems in the battle for Moslem hearts and minds.
Speak softly and carry a big stick is timeless advice that would apply to our relations with the Moslem world and their problem (to both us and them) of jihadis living amongst them.
UPDATE: Polling shows the limits:
Euphoria swept the world after the election of President Obama, a symbol of hope and yearning for compromise after years of war and resentment toward his predecessor's style and policies. Today, after an electoral rebuke at home, Obama is still popular among America's traditional allies, but his star power among Muslims — a focus of his international outreach — is fading.
Helping our Moslem allies fight the jihadis physically and ideologically would be far more effective than presidential outreach speeches. They only make his domestic fan boys swoon, without affecting the global fight against Islamo-fascism.
Remember, punish enemies and reward friends.
