Cautious Optimism In Honduras, No Thanks To Clinton and Obama
Word from Honduras this weekend that a tentative settlement might have been reached between ousted former president Manuel Zelaya and the interim government in Tegucigalpa might bring the episode so many ignorant members of the Obama Administration, its State Department, and deer-in-the-headlights fawning (get it?) press have insisted on calling a “coup”, which it isn’t and has not ever been. I won’t rehash the whole thing. I’ve written about it here, here, and here. Follow the links in those posts (particularly the ones that point to Wall Street Journal articles) for a brief history of the whole mess.
I’m optimistic because the settlement calls for the Honduran Supreme Court first to issue an opinion on his return. Then Zelaya must face his nation’s Congress who will vote on whether or not to allow him to serve out the remainder of what would have been his term as president. Given (as Otto Reich mentions) that the Supreme Court unanimously ruled against him in June, and the Congress voted 122-6 against him at the time, it’s unlikely he’s going to be taking back his old office.
I’m cautious, however, because why would Zelaya knowingly agree to face such an inevitable shit-storm? He undoubtedly has the support of Venezuela’s Chavez, who will undoubtedly attempt to rouse (through coersion, threats, or out-right bribes) members of that representative body (which, I needn’t remind you is populated by a majority of Zelaya’s own party) into reinstating the would-be dictator. I’m not ready to claim victory for the Honduran people just yet. After all, it is Central America, and it’s not as if there’s a stalwart American voice calling for the defense of law and order (or even respect for the Constitution). I smell a rat. We’ll have to wait and see.
Oh yea, and America. How have our leaders worked to restore law and order in Honduras? Well, if Zelaya is (once again) sent packing and the elections scheduled for later this month go on as planned in an orderly and democratic fashion, it’ll be no thanks to President Obama or Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Since the beginning of this crisis, the Obama Administration and State Department seems to have been working stridently against fair and lawful resolution to this saga. All along the way, they have offered zero in defense of their non-sensical position of denying Hondurans their right to a solid Constitutional government while supporting this Chavez mini-me. When asked to defend their decisions, they have bobbed and weaved. While the Congressional Research Service (a law branch of the Library of Congress) found the ouster to be legit, State’s top lawyer, Harold Koh continued to stonewall on even the reasoning behind the inconceivable decision of the Secretary and her boss.
The agreement allowing Zelaya to (once again) face his peoples’ representatives to (once again) decide his fate gives Clinton and Obama just what they need: A face-saving out. Nobody, once this is over, is likely to revisit their oulandishly stupid decisions and prevarications on the situation. Indeed, if all is well and over, they should be very grateful for hte short attention-spans of their handmaids in the US press.
-Nick (ColoradoPatriot, from HQ)
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and he got the Nobel Peace prize for what? Helping Chavez to get control of Honduras?……
Comment by straightAussie — November 1, 2009 @ 3:45 pm - November 1, 2009
I smell a rat too. Particularly since John Kerry, undoubtedly at Obama’s behest, was just out, in truly Orwellian fashion, trying to force the Congressional Research Service’s legal analysis down the memory hole.
If the results of the Supreme Court OR Congressional deliberations are more than a little different than previous decisions, I think we can safely assume the Obama administration interfered despite claims they wouldn’t.
Comment by American Elephant — November 1, 2009 @ 5:14 pm - November 1, 2009
I was checking on this story and its odd that no one is reporting on it , or if they are its on the back pages somewhere in cyberspace. Fox news does have it but its not front page news. I think it should be and I thank the Gay Patriot for doing so. This is a very critical story. Most Americans have no idea who Zelaya is or what country he hails from. I’m deeply disturbed by the fact that the people of this beautiful country no longer want Chavez Jr. around. The people have spoken, why are Obama so intent on being the busy body in this country? Doesnt he have enough problems in the U.S.A. that he needs to address???? Does it have anything to do with the fact that Obama and his crony CRAZY CZARS all hail to Chavez. They Think that his way of socialism should be the way for us Americans and this is a fact. Venezuela isn’t socialist, it is communist. South America is very rich in minerals, oil, gems, soil, drugs, timber……. Maybe Obama wants to get his sticky fingers into it. By having 2 crazy dictators so close to America he can get what he wants. I have a really bad feeling about what is about to hit us all. Obama and his administration are not be trusted. We all make mistakes when we vote, but we can also change that vote.
Comment by LILY B — November 1, 2009 @ 7:39 pm - November 1, 2009
I have been in Honduras a number of times working with local people and studying Spanish and bring a very different perspective from what I read here to this whole mishmosh that has gone on in Honduras.
1) It is interesting that all the voting that went on in the Congress of Honduras was done without deposed President Zelaya being present to defend himself, and then he gets rushed out of his own country in the middle of the night… why? Sounds a lot like a real democracy at work, doesn’t it?
2) There have been thousands upon thousands of the campesinos(the common laborers) of Honduras out in the streets repeatedly since Pres. Zelaya was deposed demonstrating for his re-instatement, and out there at great personal risk for being gassed or beaten or even arrested and possibily made to disappear. I speculate that there may have been pressures brought to bear on the Congress to vote him out.
3) Given this and a significant amount of other information derived through personal resources whose identities I cannot put out because of the risk they might incur, I would speculate that Sen. Kerry and others find the report just a bit on the outrageous side because there is the rule of law, and then there is the use of law that allows a political leader whose self-interest favors the rule of a powerful few to perhaps stay just within the shady gray edges of legality, but still skirt the will of an electorate. The near future will show us if Mr. Micheletti is a puppet of the powerful business and military interests of his and other countries of the world. I personally suspect that he may very well be.
Thanks for this chance to engage in the dialogue.
Comment by Bruce B. — November 2, 2009 @ 3:50 pm - November 2, 2009
You don’t have to be Gay to comment, do you?
Zelaya was ousted for going against the constitution and refusing to listen to the congress when they kept telling him to desist. He was hooked up with Chavez and even had his referendum ballots printed in Venezuela. The country;s Supreme court ruled against him and his own party overwhelmingly voted against him. His ouster was legitimate, but the countries of the world censured and punished Honduras because it is a small poor country that they felt they could bully and look good as some kind of upholders of democracy, when in fact they were crippling that country’s democracy and trying to support a man who had dreams of being Central America’s Chavez.
This is what the current liberals have become, supporters of any country or person who is an underdog, regardless if they are extreme right wing fundamentalists or communist wannabe dictators, and I am a liberal.
I say stall until there is about three days left in Zelaya’s (former term in office) and give him back his presidency, When the three days are up, replace him with the new president and arrest him and put him on trial.
Comment by Gary Marantz — November 2, 2009 @ 7:45 pm - November 2, 2009