While the Left Stream Media are revving up the spin machine with Chris Tingle claiming that none of what happened in Egypt could have happened without Ogabe and Wolf Blitzer hinting that it, as every other wonderful thing in the world, was a direct result of that “masterful” Cairo speech the Messiah gave (Everything bad in the world is, meanwhile, the direct result of Glowbull Wormening. And Bush), we get a concise summary of the Ogabe administration’s “clear” policy regarding Egypt from Mark Steyn (h/t LC Virago):
(1) “President Mubarak is not a dictator and he should stay in office…” according to Vice President Biden
(2) “… but he needs to step down immediately…” according to Secretary Clinton
(3) “… and remain President to ensure stability …” according to Special Envoy Frank Wisner
(4) “… and he should have resigned as President yesterday …” according to Press Secretary Robert Gibbs
(5) “… paving the way to elections that must be held within three months …” according to senior officials
(6) “… unless he waits till September, which is fine by us…” according to the State Department.
Got that? The official U.S. position is that Mubarak needs to go immediately, he needs to stay indefinitely, he needs to stay for a bit and then go, he needs to stay for a bit longer then go sooner rather than later, unless he decides to stay until September because he is standing in the way of the full bloom of a new Egyptian democracy, unless it turns out that he is all that stands between us and a Muslim Brotherhood takeover, because the Muslim Brotherhood are a radical theocratic tyranny in waiting, unless of course it turns out that they are reasonable moderate types we should have been talking to all along. So that’s the official Obama position verbatim from WhiteHouse.gov.
If you’re making that critical 3:00 AM call to the oval office and you get voicemail press buttons #1 through #6 for whichever Obama position on Egypt suits you best.
Betterer, Smarterer Diplomacy!™
Thatisall.
Bush had been spending millions on the pro-democracy movement in Egypt, spending which Obama of course cut. So maybe Obama can claim he spurred the pro-democracy forces into action by starving them into the streets. I did get a laugh out of his comment that we were witnessing historic changes, which is the kind of comment you get at a… Read more »
Sir George says: His administration wasn’t even spectating as well as the rest of us. That is it in a nutshell. There was many differences of opinion on what we (America) should do here on the Rott. Some wanted us to push for stability, protect Israel and the status quo. Others wanted to roll the dice and try for a… Read more »
But, But, Misha, this was all handled well as part of a masterful communication campaign designed to provide a “calming” influence on Egypt and the region as a whole. Our allies in the region are very very appreciative of our ability to “influence” the current outcome and will continue to welcome our “suggestions” as to how things should proceed. Our… Read more »
Well, at least where the administration needs to go from here on is clear. The first step is to provide refuge for Mubarak and his family in New York, Boston, or Chicago, which will reassure other leaders that they have a friend in America. Then we need to fast track his US citizenship. After that he’ll be able to donate… Read more »
Whiffle, waffle, dither, blather, hem and haw. What a bunch of incompetent nincompoops. Having said and done
nothing would have been better. The disconcerting thing displayed here, is the lack of communication and
consensus within the Administration. These people are incapable of responding to a National Emergency.
We are truly screwed.
US to give Egypt $1.3b in military aid in ‘11
Israel slated for $3b; Egypt will also receive economic aid “with the understanding that the gov’t will undertake democratic reforms.”
There would be a frag grenade that “accidentally” rolled into the CP.
Arrr, M’heartys, The mainsl’s been kindled, the fo’castles been fetished, we’er adriftin’ rudderless towards the breakers,,
and the captain’s got his mug stuck in a snifter,
‘Steerin’ us into course o’ providence ‘friendly as a fortypounder,,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1Gn0e7kvTA
LC TerribleTroy says:
Damn, I want what you’re having.
Steyn should run for President.
Hell, if the current interloper could do it …
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
Mubarak has spent the past thirty years riding on the fear that the Muslim Brotherhood would take over the Middle East if it weren’t for him personally standing in the way. This current event gives lie to that notion. To soon to tell at that one. As far as the fakistanians they can go back to Trans-Jordan where they came… Read more »
This doesn’t make much sense to me. I just can’t agree that it’s somehow ok to “spread democracy” to some places while at the same time we support dictators in Egypt and Pakistan. Also, I agree with DJ when he says that we should not offer Mubarak any asylum. That is the reason why we have so much bad blood… Read more »
This concept that you can throw money at a dictator with the “understanding that deomcratic reforms will be made” is bullshit. Foreign aid for dictators is about as useless as economic sanctions. I guarantee you that during the many years of sanctions against Iraq, even though his people were starving, Sadaam Hussein did not miss one meal. IMHO, we spend… Read more »
The Shah was about as important as the Queen of England, a minor character with no power until we propped him up. Great Britain was pissed off because Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh decided to nationalize the oil and shut BP out of the country because they had been cheating the Iranians for years. At first, the British went to Truman… Read more »
So Obamamster’s gonna claim this as a “win” for himself…
Will he be so willing to accept credit when this boy comes back home?
http://www.tabletmag.com/news-and-politics/58461/jewel-of-the-nile/
Response to Patvann @:
Nope. If that happens, it will be Bush’s fault.
Take a look at this. Evidently, not everybody thought Mubarak was a “brutal dictator”. Here’s a head of state who calls him… “a stalwart ally”… “a force for stability and good in the region”… and someone who shouldn’t be lectured to by the United States.
“Mubarak has been a force for good”
I sure hope the Egyptians were careful what they wished for.