Breaching Democracy, Obama-Clinton Policies rescuing tyranny from the grip of liberty

Enabling Egypt’s Military Rulers
26 March, 2012 – NYT – Editorial

The United States has built its relationship with Egypt around the Army, which it has supported with more than $39 billion in military aid over the last three decades. Egypt’s year-old, pro-democracy revolution gave Washington a chance — and a reason — to alter that relationship to support civil society. The Obama administration made a serious error in choosing not to do so. Even worse, the purpose was largely to protect American arms manufacturers who produce the weapons sent to Egypt.

On Friday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton approved the resumption of military aid, which totals $1.3 billion annually. The money was held up in October because of a new law that required the administration to certify that Egypt was making progress on basic freedoms before military aid could be released. Congress acted after Cairo’s military rulers began prosecuting four American-financed democracy groups and detained 15 workers.

Mrs. Clinton did not certify that Egypt had met the democratic standards that Congress set. Instead, she waived that requirement. That move allowed money for F-16 fighters and Abrams M1A1 tanks to flow again. While there has been some progress toward a new democratic order, with a new Parliament seated earlier this year, the military government has not repealed the emergency law under which thousands of activists are detained and tried in military courts. Many Egyptians doubt the military will ever cede power to elected civilian leaders. Still, there are sound reasons to keep working with the Egyptian Army, including maintaining the peace treaty with Israel, cooperating on counterterrorism and dealing with Iran. But this decision seems driven mainly by political calculations because the weapons are mostly built in the United States, with officials claiming that withholding the aid would cost jobs and penalties.

The administration should have found a way to delay at least some of the aid to show firm support for the democratic process. Mrs. Clinton could still maintain some leverage over the money by putting it in a Treasury Department account where the United States would retain control, rather than in a separate interest-bearing bank account controlled jointly by the Egyptians and the United States, which has been the custom. Between now and July 1, the country is to rewrite its Constitution and elect a president. All Egyptians need to be assured that the United States is behind the democratic transition. The release of military funds sends exactly the wrong message. …more