Monday, July 1, 2013

Islamic Summer: Egyptians protest Morsi, some blame Obama, America (UPDATE)

How 'bout that Arab Spring? No lack of fireworks in Egypt. It's going off like a Roman candle! Certainly didn't take them long to realize they shouldn't have been so hasty to remove Mubarak in exchange for a Muslim Brotherhood thug. So does Obama want to stake his claim to this now?
Breitbart: The demonstrations that began Sunday in Cairo, Egypt against the Muslim Brotherhood government of President Mohamed Morsi have attracted "millions" of supporters and many counter-demonstrators as well, making the protest the largest political event in the history of the world, according to the BBC.

The protests in Tahrir Square and throughout Egypt exceed those that ousted President Hosni Mubarak in 2011 in the key event of the Arab Spring. Two years later, after constitutional reforms and elections that saw Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood move to aggrandize their power, the public backlash is immense.

The demonstrations pose a puzzle for President Barack Obama, who was touring South Africa at the other end of the continent when the demonstrations began. In 2011, Obama initially supported Mubarak, then threw his weight behind the protests and reached out to the Muslim Brotherhood on its way to power.
Related link: Livestream From Tahrir Square

As Egyptian opposition groups accuse America of conspiring to keep Morsi in power (of course they'd blame us), Obama's not doing much to disprove them, as he refuses to criticize the Muslim Brotherhood leader (a problem that he didn't have with Mubarak).
TheHill: President Obama on Monday declined to call for the resignation of embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi despite the massive protests calling for his ouster.

Obama said the White House is “concerned” about the outbreak of violence in Egypt and is monitoring the situation closely. But the president said Morsi’s election was “legitimate” and called on all parties in Egypt to return to the negotiating table.

“Our position has always been, it’s not our job to choose who Egypt’s leaders are,” Obama told reporters in Tanzania. “When I took a position that it was time for Egypt to transition [away from Hosni Mubarak in 2011], it was based on the fact that Egypt had not had democratic government for decades, if ever. And that’s what the people were calling for.”

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Egyptians took to the streets over the weekend to demand that Morsi step down. Egypt’s military on Monday threatened to intervene if the uprising against the Muslim Brotherhood leader lasts another 48 hours.
So now Mr. Look-At-Me doesn't want to get involved? Typical. With his staunch support of the Morsi regime, it's no wonder protesters are blaming Obama, and thus America.

Related links: ULTIMATUM: Egypt's military give pols 48 hours to solve crisis
FLASHBACK: Obama administration gives $1.5 billion to Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood
Raw Video: Anti-Morsi Protesters Ransack Muslim Brotherhood Headquarters

More on Tuesday... 
Morsi addresses Egypt, vows to protect his “constitutional legitimacy” with his life
Obama backs Morsi, threatens to withdraw aid if Morsi ousted

UPDATE: Morsi ousted, Egypt's constitution thrown out, and military coup in effect!
CNN: Egypt’s military deposed the country’s first democratically elected president Wednesday night, installing the head of the country’s highest court as an interim leader, the country’s top general announced.

Gen. Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi said the military was fulfilling its “historic responsibility” to protect the country by ousting Mohammed Morsi, the Western-educated Islamist leader elected a year ago. Morsi failed to meet demands to share power with opponents who thronged the streets of Cairo, and those crowds erupted as the announcement was made.