The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, has expressed anxiety over what she perceives to be a growing atmosphere of anti-Americanism in this State. As Minister responsible for the presence of about 600 US companies, with investments of €40 billion, she has a duty to monitor the situation closely and to do everything possible to protect further inward investment.
But her conclusion that "hard-Left" elements, along with Sinn Féin and the Green Party, were somehow responsible for infecting the minds of 100,000 people who protested against war on the streets of Dublin nine days ago was both wrong and insulting.
It is true the political elements Ms Harney complained about were present at the largest protest seen in Dublin for decades. But the vast majority of those in attendance were ordinary citizens from across the political spectrum - including the Progressive Democrats - who objected to any unilateral military action by the United States against Iraq. Just as the million people who thronged London were asking Mr Tony Blair to give peace a further chance, so Irish people were insisting that war on Iraq was the very last and least acceptable option at this time.
Being opposed to military action that may not be necessary or just, is very different from being anti-American. Of all other nationalities, Irish people probably feel the closest affinity to Americans. History and blood link our two countries and we owe a great deal to our transatlantic cousins, apart altogether from economic considerations. At the same time, even closely-knit families sometimes disagree on what is the correct course of action. In the United States itself, there is growing opposition to President Bush's determination to go to war.
The size of the Dublin protest changed things here. Government ambiguity on a range of issues disappeared and both the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste said they regarded a second UN resolution as vital if war was to be waged. At the same time, the findings of an Irish Times/MRBI opinion poll appeared to promise trouble ahead for the Coalition Government. A majority objected to the existing provision of facilities at Shannon Airport to the US military. And, even with a fresh UN mandate, 49 per cent of the public would deny the use of Shannon Airport for purposes of war, compared to 42 per cent in favour.
In such circumstances, it seems likely the groups identified by the Tánaiste will continue with their protests. They are entitled to do so in a democracy. But their success will be arbitrated by the behaviour of President Bush and whether he will accept the authority and integrity of the UN in moving to disarm Saddam Hussein. The leader of the Progressive Democrats may have been seeking to minimise future demonstrations by warning her own supporters and other well-meaning, middle class voters against being infected and misled by anti-American militants. It was a crude intervention, worthy of the days of Red scares. Ms Harney should know better.