Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal is staking out a strong position in an area outside a governor’s normal portfolio, and positioning himself in the race for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Though he is not a declared candidate yet, this is a strong indication of his intention to throw his hat in. The Weekly Standard has received an advance copy of remarks he will deliver next week on London, and they will raise eyebrows among the PC crowd, and possibly set a bar for frank discussion of the problems the world faces with jihad. Some excerpts from the Weekly Standard report:

Referring to Clinton's recent comment on having empathy for the views of America's enemies, Jindal is planning to say, "Our former Secretary of State in America recently said that we need to 'show respect for our enemies' and 'empathize with their perspective and point of view.' Well, yes, understanding our enemies as a means of destroying them, I’m all for that.  But empathizing with them as if perhaps we can find some common ground, I have no interest in that kind of mindless naiveté."

And:

"To be clear, I have no interest in defaming any religion, nor do I have any interest in assigning the maniacal acts of radical Islamists to millions of Muslims worldwide.

"I’m interested only in dealing with reality and facts.

"And the fact is that radical Islamists do not believe in freedom or common decency nor are they willing to accommodate it in any way and anywhere.

"We need to stop pretending otherwise.

"We are fools to pretend otherwise. How many Muslims in this world agree with these radicals? I have no idea, I hope it is a small minority.

"But it is clear that far too many do, and it is clear that they must be stopped.”

And:

“Sharia law is not just different than our law, it’s not just a cultural difference, it is oppression and it is wrong.

"It subjugates women and treats them as property, and it is antithetical to valuing all of human life equally.

"It is the very definition of oppression. We must stop pretending otherwise.

"In my country, Christianity is the largest religion. And we require exactly no one to conform to it. And we do not discriminate against anyone who does not conform to it. It’s called freedom.

"A so-called religion that allows for and endorses killing those who oppose it is not a religion at all, it is a terrorist movement.

"I do continue to believe and hope that most Muslims oppose these bloodthirsty acts of terror.”

Surely, Governor Jindal knows that the Koran itself calls for death to those who apostatize.

My suspicion is that these remarks have vast appeal among voters, especially GOP primary voters. Forcing Hillary Clinton (and other potential Dem candidates) into a defensive posture is a good idea.

For more of the speech, see the Weekly Standard article here.