...t’s first democratic elections, Clinton had no doubt expected some degree of protest during her visit. But as the Secretary’s trip progressed, it became increasingly apparent that the Clinton-Brotherhood rumor was not just an Egyptian phenomenon. Rather, this particular conspiracy theory was one with deep roots that traced back not only to the banks of the Nile but also to the distant shores of the Potomac. On June 13, Congresswoman Michele Bachm...
...that is why we will support them everywhere.” While the Obama administration stumbled through the rush of the Arab uprising in 2011, and continues to dither on many regional issues, it did in fact throw its support behind the Egyptian President, Mohammed Morsi, upon his election in 2012. In fact, the situation was almost too good to be true—the United States would have an opportunity to cultivate a positive relationship with a democratically elec...
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be wise to consider learning from the late Egyptian president Anwar Sadat. On May 17, 1977 at 11:30 PM, Egyptian Vice President Hosni Mubarak learned that Menachem Begin had surprisingly won the Israeli elections. Mubarak woke President Sadat, saying, “Mr. President, I have bad news for you, Begin will be Prime Minister.” Sadat turned to Mubarak and surprisingly (but providentially) responded, “No...
Nadine Mansour “The success of our efforts to devise a thoroughly Egyptian model for reform will depend to a large extent on the ability of our political parties to mould themselves into dynamic grassroots forces, thereby stimulating broader public participation in the political process,” wrote Ibrahim Nafie, a columnist for the Al-Ahram weekly newspaper, referring to Egypt’s first multi-candidate elections in 2005. But this comment could not b...
From Wikimedia Commons It is a great mistake to suggest simplicity when an issue is obviously complex. Time magazine’s July 9 cover story on the state of Egypt’s rulers boasts the simple and suggestive headline, “The Revolution That Wasn’t.” But while this headline is provocative, it is not nuanced, and it is misleading. The Egyptian revolution very much was. We may be collectively worried about the stability of Egypt’s fledgling democracy, but...
The situation in Cairo is changing daily. When Max posted it seemed as though Tahrir Square was emptying out and Mubarak’s wait-it-out strategy was sapping the will of the protesters. What the world thought was the beginning of a revolution was looking more like a rearrangement of the regime that would revolutionize little for the Egyptian people who craved a transparent, democratic government. However, today, Al Jazeera reported that 20,000 fac...
...en two polarizing options. Those dissatisfied with the results are increasingly pointing to irregularities in the electoral process or flaws in the electoral system created by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces. For example, Egyptians are selecting their president before creating the very constitution that specifies the obligations and powers that their elected officials are to assume. How might this be problematic if Shafiq or Morsi are to assu...
...ip change in Egypt is irrelevant for US interests in the region. Why? Despite changing governance in the region, the United States will uphold its policies of the past three decades so long as it continues offering aid to the Egyptian military and the military respects its peace treaty with Israel. In 1979 following the Camp David Accords, the United States brokered a peace treaty between Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat. Since then, Egypt’s milita...
...ore broadly, the democratization of technology that allows citizen journalists to cheaply purchase cameras, microphones, and internet access and publish important reports on the internet. In spite of the challenges facing the Egyptian people, Qandil was an optimist; he noted that outside funding of $200 million, from both the Egyptian diaspora and non-Egyptians, had already been injected into the media scene. With only 27 channels, this could hav...
After nearly two weeks of turmoil, it looks like Tahrir Square is starting to empty out. The Egyptian Revolution – if we can call it that – seems to be entering its inevitable second phase, the power political phase, where elites sit down at a negotiating table and wield the old images of the angry masses as bargaining chips during administrative transition. This is not “revolution” in the fullest sense of the word – in the sense that evokes ima...
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