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Reader question: Please explain this passage, “grasping at straws” in particular: New York Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel claimed President Barack Obama is “grasping at straws” by considering an alliance with Iran against ultra-violent Sunni Islamists threatening Baghdad. My comments: America and Iran are arch enemies. Now, President Barack Obama is considering working with Iran against Sunni Islamists in Iraq. Sunni Islamists are ultra-violent, of course. They’re currently the No. 1 threat to America trying to maintain peace and stability in Iraq, a country America invaded twice in order to, among other things, oust its dictator Saddam Hussein. Saddam Hussein... Oh, well, so much for geopolitics of the Middle East and America’s unceasing involvement as well as its unending trouble in this region. Let’s get back to what it means when New York Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel claims Obama is “grasping at straws” by even considering an alliance with Iran. It means, in short, that Engel doesn’t think it’s going to work. And he thinks it’s a desperate measure, meaning the Obama Administration is desperate, trying to find anything that works. The Obama Administration probably has tried everything, but none of it has worked. That’s why Barack Obama is accused of being at his wit’s end and therefore desperate. | 
