Wednesday, February 09, 2011

Arab Dictators Are Shaking

Official portrait of Secretary of State Hillar...Image via WikipediaEgypt: A Revolution, Not A Reform Movement
How Many People Could Mubarak Kill?
Arab Dictators Will Fall Like A House Of Cards
New York Times: Allies Press U.S. to Go Slow on Egypt: Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates have each repeatedly pressed the United States not to cut loose Egypt’s president, Hosni Mubarak, too hastily, or to throw its weight behind the democracy movement in a way that could further destabilize the region ..... One Middle Eastern envoy said that on a single day, he spent 12 hours on the phone with American officials. ..... There is evidence that the pressure has paid off. On Saturday, just days after suggesting that it wanted immediate change, the administration said it would support an “orderly transition” managed by Vice President Omar Suleiman. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said that Mr. Mubarak’s immediate resignation might complicate, rather than clear, Egypt’s path to democracy, given the requirements of Egypt’s Constitution..... “Everyone is taking a little breath,” said a diplomat from the region ..... “There’s a sense that we’re getting our message through.” .... a sudden, chaotic change in Egypt would destabilize the region or, in the Arab nations, even jeopardize their own leaders, many of whom are also autocrats facing restive populations..... She said that she had spoken to King Abdullah II of Jordan and that President Obama had made calls to other leaders. ...... Administration officials said the tense mood in many of these countries had eased in recent days, as the United States has embraced a transition process in Egypt that does not demand Mr. Mubarak’s immediate departure...... Israeli officials, who have long viewed Mr. Mubarak and Mr. Suleiman
King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz. (2002 photo)Image via Wikipedia as stabilizing influences in a dangerous region, have made clear to the administration that they support evolution rather than revolution in Egypt. They believe it is important to make changes within the system rather than change the system first and hope stability can be maintained.... he has been the Israeli government’s preferred successor to Mr. Mubarak for several years...... Speaking to Mr. Obama on Sunday, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed of Abu Dhabi, the Emirates’ defense chief, emphasized the need for “stability” in Egypt ..... The crown prince “also stressed the necessity that the period of transition in Egypt should be smooth and organized through the framework of national institutions” ..... Obama also spoke last week with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia..... The Arab leaders all had the same message for the United States, several Arab officials said. They thought Mr. Obama went too far last Tuesday when he said that Mr. Mubarak needed to begin the transition in Egypt “now” — followed a day later by Mr. Gibbs’s declaration that “now means yesterday.” ..... One Arab diplomat likened the democracy movement to a train fueled by university students and human rights advocates..... “Eventually, those students will have to get off that train and go back to school, and the human rights people will have to go back to work, and you know who will be on the train when it finally rolls into the station?” the diplomat asked. “The Muslim Brotherhood.”
President George W. Bush and Egyptian Presiden...Image via Wikipedia

Hillary is not getting it. Mubarak goes. The constitution goes. What comes into place is an interim government and an interim constitution.

America should not feel like it has the option to betray the Arab peoples currently not represented by the governments in place. Washington has been in talks with a whole bunch of illegitimate regimes.

The king of Nepal also tried to scare people by saying if you oust me, you get the Maoists. What these people are saying is if you oust Mubarak, Bin Laden will come into power. Autocrats will use any logic to stay in power.

Hillary needs to stop talking reform b.s. in the face of revolutions. Lead, follow, or get out of the way.
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