Washington or Ataturk?

I've said for some time that Iraq needs its own George Washington, or al-Washington, or whatever. Maybe they need an Ataturk more. BBC:

Secularism is fundamental to Turkey's identity as a nation.

Turkey was founded in 1923 by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, a military general, in what had been the Ottoman Sultanate.

Ataturk was determined that this mainly Muslim nation would be a modern, secular country, and he introduced wide-ranging reforms, including the emancipation of women, the introduction of western dress, legal code and alphabet, and the abolition of Islamic institutions.

If Iraqis (all Iraqis) viewed themselves as Iraqis first, and Sunnis, Shias, and Kurds second, many of their problems would vanish in an instant.

I'm also amazed that many Christians in America don't understand why we're secular and must stay that way.