Hillary Clinton hasn’t always been as opposed to using the term “radical Islam” as she was during Saturday’s Democratic presidential debate.
As a New York senator in Feb. 2005, Clinton used much more aggressive language to describe ongoing terrorists threats from “radical Islamic extremists.”
But that was a different time, when Clinton wasn’t running for president on a progressive liberal platform.
Asked Saturday whether she agreed with Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio’s recent comments that “we are at war with radical Islam,” Clinton declined to use the term, saying that it is “not particularly helpful.” (RELATED: Hillary: Saying ‘Radical Islam’ Is ‘Not Particularly Helpful’)
“I don’t think we’re at war with Islam,” said Clinton. “I don’t think we’re at war with all Muslims. I think we’re at war with jihadists.”
Clinton’s aversion to pairing the words “radical” and “Islam” matches the Obama White House’s unspoken policy of refusing to identify Muslim terrorists by their faith. Obama maintained that posture even in the wake of ISIS terrorists’ attacks in Paris on Friday.
But as a conservative researcher noted on Twitter, it was at an acceptance speech for the German Media Prize on Feb. 13, 2005 that Clinton told it like it was.
Citing “democracy, tolerance, rule of law, individual rights” as principles that the U.S. shares with Germany, Clinton said that “it is precisely those values…that are under attack from the radical Islamist extremists.”
“Their ideology disdains our liberal democratic values and seeks to destroy all that we hold dear.”
Later in the speech, Clinton decried “the threat of fundamentalist, Islamist terror” being directed at both the U.S. and Europe.
“It is a threat to us all,” she said, citing the March 11, 2004 train bombing in Madrid which was carried out by a local cell of al Qaeda. The attack left 191 dead.
It’s not surprising that Clinton has changed her tune over the years. She’s committed several notable flip-flops as a presidential candidate. She’s moved to the left on immigration, the Trans-Pacific Partnership and gay marriage as she faces a surprisingly strong challenge from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Clinton is set to unveil her plan to fight ISIS on Thursday.