From the Jerusalem Post:
CAIRO - USPresident Barack Obama has invitedEgypt 's newly elected Islamist president, Mohamed Mursi, to visit the United States in September, an Egyptian official said on Sunday, reflecting the new ties Washington is cultivating with the region's Islamists.
Washington, long wary of Islamists and an ally of ousted President Hosni Mubarak, shifted policy last year to open formal contacts with the Muslim Brotherhood, the group behind Mursi's win. Mursi formally resigned from the group after his victory.
Mursi's success at the polls mirrors the rising influence of Islamists in countries across the Middle East andNorth Africa in the wake of revolts and protests against autocratic rulers who have led the region for decades.
PASTORIUS CUTTING IN - THOSE REVOLTS AND PROTESTS WERE ENCOURAGED BY BARACK OBAMA. THEY MAY HAVE EVEN BEEN HIS PLAN ALL ALONG, SEEING AS HOW HE INVITED THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD TO HIS SPEACH IN CAIRO AT THE VERY OUTSET OF HIS PRESIDENCY.
Israel has watched with growing concern the political gains of the Brotherhood, an inspiration for the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The 84-year-old Brotherhood renounced violence as a means to achieve political change in Egypt decades ago.Analysts say that one way the United States could influence the direction of policy in Egypt, a nation at the heart of Washington's regional policy since a peace treaty was signed with Israel in 1979, would be through economic support.Washington provides $1.3 billion a year in military aid as well as other assistance and could help mobilize other donors, lenders and investors. Those could prove vital as Egypt tries to stave off a balance of payments and budget crisis."The United States is firmly committed to doing everything that we can to support Egypt's economic revival. Weunderstand the challenges that lie ahead and also the president does," Burns told reporters after his two-hour meeting with Mursi.
5 comments:
Am I missing something, or isn't inviting Morsi to the White House a stupid thing to do, expecially in election year?
It's like he believes he has the election locked up.
Or as if there isn't going to be any election at all!
I think it's just hubris which leads to political mistakes. Appearing overly friendly and respectful to MB types allows Republicans to criticize this behavior.. it plays to the valid characterization that Obama is soft on radical islam.
Putting the political issue aside, the guy is the elected prez of Egypt. Inviting him is not the brightest move, but it fits with Obama's obsequious behavior towards those who can harm us.
Frankly I don't see how snubbing the guy helps anyone, but it only makes political sense if we are working secretly with others to ensure his downfall. That would be something which could never be told, and that means Obama would never do it.
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