Last Sunday at 2 p.m., a blue-and-white Air Force jet left Andrews Air Force Base bound for Cairo. On board was Frank G. Wisner, an adroit ex-diplomat whom President Obama had asked hours before to undertake a supremely delicate mission: nudging President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt out of power. – A Diplomatic Scramble as an Ally Is Pushed to the Exit
When you’re up against it and a hint of daylight breaks through it’s time to rally your allies. Start at the top.
Give points to the military.
… I want to commend the Egyptian military for the professionalism and patriotism that it has shown thus far in allowing peaceful protests while protecting the Egyptian people.
Announce what the hell your foreign policy is.
And going forward, the United States will continue to stand up for democracy and the universal rights that all human beings deserve, in Egypt and around the world.
Remind everyone that leaders are glorified temps who serve at the pleasure of the people.
Indeed, all of us who are privileged to serve in positions of political power do so at the will of our people.
Tell the truth to power, even to your friends and no matter how painful.
What is clear — and what I indicated tonight to President Mubarak — is my belief that an orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful, and it must begin now.
That basic fairness and belief in the future is foundational.
And it should result in a government that’s not only grounded in democratic principles, but is also responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people.
Give credit where credit is due to the Egyptian people who are providing an astounding example to the entire world.
Over the last few days, the passion and the dignity that has been demonstrated by the people of Egypt has been an inspiration to people around the world, including here in the United States, and to all those who believe in the inevitability of human freedom.
Always be talking to the next generations, because it’s through them we will win the future.
To the people of Egypt, particularly the young people of Egypt, I want to be clear: We hear your voices.
When presented with a great community of people who have found common purpose to change the world in which they live salute it.
… That truth can be seen in the sense of community in the streets. It can be seen in the mothers and fathers embracing soldiers. And it can be seen in the Egyptians who linked arms to protect the national museum — a new generation protecting the treasures of antiquity; a human chain connecting a great and ancient civilization to the promise of a new day.
It’s been a rough week and a historic one to get Pres. Obama to this moment late yesterday. And as it should be, it wasn’t the President who was the face of the gaffes and 20th century rhetoric even if the words originated in the White House. Staying out of the glare enabled him to get his policy straight while displaying no fingerprints on what eventually happened. Pres. Obama could then walk to the podium and drive home the message that Sen. John Kerry laid the foundation for yesterday in his op-ed, which followed behind the scenes work that will make another great book for Bob Woodward.
The American President is a job that rewards gravitas, humility and the magic political art of transmitting your power without showing your hand.
It’s not over in Egypt, but no one can say that Pres. Obama didn’t do what needed to be done last night.
Taylor – You did a great job on this piece. Obama said what he had to say and did so elegantly. But Egypt has erupted into chaos from what I’m seeing on al jazeera and CNN and no matter what the US or any other country says, it’s up to the Egyptian people now. It seems that Mubarak sent in his savage goon squads after his whining, “woe is me” speech to the Egyptian people. Suddenly it’s not a peaceful demonstration anymore. I am praying that the army does not move against the demonstrators. It seems that the police are being sent back in. Did you see the charge by the pro-Mubarak supporters on horseback and camels? That must have been terrifying.
I don’t know, Taylor. And I sincerely mean there is much I do not know. But it seems to me that Obama’s statement yesterday was still on the “tepid” and “hedging” side of the continuum. Of course, the broader, historical context was the Obama administration’s starting point for this moment – and that means U.S. supporting Mubarak. A move from there took time.
Right now, watching what’s happening in Cairo seems to me to be what Mubarak said yesterday. He talked about the kind of clashes we’re seeing now, when they hadn’t actually occurred, not anywhere near this degree. The key still seems to be the military’s response. But some of the anti-Mubarak people are insisting the pro-government crowds are sent by Mubarak, arriving in government buses.
I’ve been watching it for 2 hours.
What Obama said last night & Mubarak’s reaction to not running is the juxtaposition revealing Obama has NO power over this now.
Agreed on that — Obama has no power.
Mubarak set this up yesterday.
Wisner, the US diplomat & the man Mubarak trusts, got Mubarak to shift a bit, but after his brutal rule he was never going to go quietly, Joyce.
Now it’s up to the world to stop.
That Mubarak took this step certainly fits his history. The general passivity of the military to this point is obviously better than turning on the anti-government crowds.
“And it should result in a government that’s not only grounded in democratic principles, but is also responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people.”
So let’s all pray that a radical islamist terrorist faction does not seize control of Egypt. The violent groups will have the advantage.
I they do, they will try to destroy Israel.
At this early stage, lets give the tens of millions of egyptian people a bit more credit, particularly given these demonstrations have primarily been about economic justice, an end to corruption, freedom and the right to elect their leaders. It’s not like the only two options are a corrupt dictator vs. violent Islamic jihad.
While the U.S. obviously is anxious about what type of government may form, lets not forget that the power vacuum that’s been created is a result of a 30 year dictatorship we supported- a dictatorship which violently repressed all opposition.The result is that no viable opposition group has been able to have the sort of organization and political machine to step up in a situation like this. And because of our support for Mubarak, we’ve helped create this situation.
Most knowledgeable terrorism and Mideast experts I have seen/heard have said that it is likely that a group like the Muslim Brotherhood would gain some seats in a Parliament but that they would not garner a majority. I think there’s been a bit too much fear-mongering and misinformation about this. Egyptians are clamoring for economic, educational and political opportunities- this has not been about instilling an Islamist govt nor has this been about anti-US or anti-Israel sentiment. The worst thing we can do right now is try to make it about OUR (and Israel’s) needs at the expense of true functioning democracy.
Here are two good articles about how what is taking place in Egypt is NOT similar to Iran, as some keep trying to suggest:
http://mideast.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/02/01/cairo_is_not_tehran_of_1979
http://www.juancole.com/2011/02/why-egypt-2011-is-not-iran-1979.html
All I’m saying is that once Mubarek is gone, Egypt will be very vulnerable to violent factions. I’m sure you understand how this works and you know that Violent groups have no problems with violating human rights.
If indeed, this does happen, it will not be good for anyone,except of course the violent Muslim terrorists.
The Egyptian people have given no indication that they have any interest in having “violent Muslim terrorists” controlling their govt.
Also, lets not forget that for many Egyptians who opposed him, Hosni Mubarak was extremely violent but b/c he was our ally (and Israel’s), we didn’t focus on that at all lest it upset the Egyptian govt and the status quo.
In fact, even symbolic attempts to expose the human rights violations and encourage democracy in Egypt were undermined by our own members of Congress:
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/02/02/how_the_senate_resolution_on_egyptian_democracy_died
“The Egyptian people have given no indication that they have any interest in having “violent Muslim terrorists” controlling their govt.”
No kidding, Sec. great observation.
There is a big difference between the Egyptians not having an interest and having a Violent Group “seizing “power.
Note the word “seize”.
Not sure what you are trying to argue with me about here,or is it just because you know I am not a liberal that you intentionally are trying make a point that I haven’t even addressed in my original post?
I’m actually not familiar with what ideology you ascribe to so that has nothing to do with it.
I’m not saying I know what is going to happen, I was just saying it seems that a lot of people seem to be raising the possibility of violent extremists taking over but that I hadn’t seen or heard any evidence that that was what the Egyptian people wanted and I’m sort of looking to them for guidance.
Talk about a a riddle wrapped inside a mystery wrapped inside an enigma! With all due respect to the “experts,” I don’t think anyone can predict how this thing is going to play out in the long run. It could turn out just as SCB is saying. It could turn out like cjoblak says. We simply don’t know.
In thinking about the issue, I looked to Turkey for guidance. But even there, the experts disagree. Some say Turkey is not becoming more fundamentalist. Others say it is, and that the Islamists are simply biding their time until they consolidate power. Both camps even point to the same data, such as the attempt some years ago to criminalize adultery. The former school of thought says the fact that Islamists withdrew the legislation in the face of secular opposition shows their pragmatism. The latter says the attempt alone is chilling evidence that the Islamists have turned the page on Ataturk’s vision of a secular Turkey.
As such, we should be very skeptical of emphatic statements about what the Muslim Brotherhood will or will not do. At this stage in the game, no one can accurately predict what can happen. All of which suggests to me that the United States should follow Star Trek’s Prime Directive, and let the good people of Egypt work this thing out for themselves.
And if that thought disturbs you, ask yourself how the question is any different from Saddam Hussein and Iraq. If we should have stayed out of it then, we should stay out of it now.