No easy answers for failure of United States to assimilate extreme jihadist people living in the country

For 250 years, the United States has lived up to the poem inscribed on the Statue of Liberty that says, in part:

Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.

No other country on Earth comes close to the success of the American melting pot through assimilation. It's a crucial aspect of the United States. Of course, there have been challenges. This is arguably one of those challenging times. Extremists of any background can be dangerous. One of the cofounders of the American Muslim League raised some concerns this summer about the assimilation of Muslims into American society who came to the country in recent decades. She argues in an op-ed quote, "impressionable young Muslims are at risk of being radicalized by identity politics instead of becoming contributors to the American melting pot in healthy and patriotic ways."

The opinion piece goes on to say there are two opposing examples of assimilation presented in American society: one that rewards victimhood and grievances that can be inflammatory, and the other promotes contribution, achievement and gratitude and concludes Muslims need to see the United States as a land of opportunity while steering clear of grievance politics and resentment.

It's difficult to see large rallies of people chanting "death to America" and "globalize the intifada." What can the country do better to convince this group to accept the values of western civilization at the core of the American dream? Host Jim Niedelman got into the issues with former Iowa Republican party chair Steve Grubbs and Democratic political consultant Kevin Perkins.

"Neither Democrats nor Republicans have figured out how to separate out the Muslim immigrants who are Islamic jihadists from the mainstream Muslim immigrants who will be great Americans," Grubbs said. "Because of that, we know that we are bringing in some percentage that are going to ultimately lead to 9/11."

"We need to take a look at our own country and how we are moving forward or backward," Perkins said. "Are we a pluralistic secular country still? I don't know."

To hear more, click on the video above.

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