Remember Honduras? Obama does, and he hasn’t given up trying to destabilize the country
Obama has not given up practicing on Honduras, working on his techniques to destabilize it and support a leftist thug if at all possible.
You got to hand it to him: he’s consistent.
What appeared at the outset to be a possible aberration has become a pattern. What initially seemed a surprise is a surprise no longer. Obama supported Zelaya not just because he is a fellow-leftist, but in order to stand for the principle that, once a person is elected, he’s allowed to do anything he wants.
Here’s the picture in Honduras, according to the intrepid Mary O’Grady, who has covered the story from the start for the WSJ and will not let it go:
Four months after a presidential election, reports from Honduras suggest the Obama administration remains obsessed with repairing its foreign-policy image by regaining the upper hand. The display of raw colonialist hubris is so pronounced that locals now refer to U.S. ambassador Hugo Llorens as “the proconsul.”
Washington’s bullying is two-pronged. First is a maniacal determination to punish those involved in removing Mr. Zelaya. Second is an attempt to force Honduras to allow Mr. Zelaya, who now lives in the Dominican Republic, to return without facing any repercussions for the illegal actions that provoked his removal. Both goals are damaging the bilateral relationship, polarizing the nation and raising the risk of a resurgence of political violence.
The U.S., as represented by Mr. Llorens, has been at the center of the Zelaya crisis all along. People familiar with events leading up to Mr. Zelaya’s arrest on June 28 say that had the U.S. ambassador not worked behind the scenes to block a congressional vote to remove the president a few days earlier, the dramatic deportation would never have happened.
The State Department denies this allegation. But numerous sources maintain that Mr. Llorens’ interference allowed Mr. Zelaya to push ahead with an unconstitutional referendum. Fearing he would use violence””as he had before””to trample the rule of law, the Supreme Court took action. Mr. Zelaya was arrested, shipped off to San José, and removed from power by a vote of Congress the same day.
Honduras had defied Uncle Sam and the U.S., led by Mr. Llorens, decided that it had to be taught a lesson. It took out the brass knuckles and tried hard to unseat interim president Roberto Micheletti in the interest of restoring Mr. Zelaya to the office.
But the Americans had scores to settle. The U.S had already yanked dozens of visas from officials and the business community as punishment for noncompliance with its pro-Zelaya policy. Then, just days before President Porfirio Lobo’s inauguration in January, Hondurans estimate it pulled at least 50 more from Micheletti supporters. The visas have not been returned, and locals say Mr. Llorens continues to foster a climate of intimidation with his visa-pulling power.
He hasn’t stopped there. In early March he organized a meeting of Liberal Party Zelaya supporters and the party’s former presidential candidate, Elvin Santos, at the U.S. Embassy. Some 48 hours later the party’s zelayistas and its Santos faction voted to remove Mr. Micheletti as party head. Rigoberto Espinal Iréas, a legal adviser to the independent public prosecutor’s office, complained that the “meeting generated much bad feeling in Honduran civil society” because it was “perceived to have the purpose of intervening in Honduran national politics.”
Now more trouble is brewing: Salvadoran President Mauricio Funes, according to press reports, has said that Mr. Lobo made a promise, in front of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Mr. Funes, that Mr. Zelaya could return “without fear of political persecution.” Mr. Lobo subsequently announced that Mr. Zelaya is free to enter the country. In exchange, it is expected that foreign aid flows to Honduras will resume. But the minister of security maintains that if Mr. Zelaya returns he will be arrested.
All the newspapers in the United States should be covering this on their front pages. But they are not; and when they did cover the Honduras story they got it exactly (and purposely, I believe) wrong.
In this topsy-turvy world, the people of Honduras continue to resist the muscle of Chicago politics represented by the Obama administration (I am tempted to call it a “regime,” but I will desist for now). Let’s hope the people of Honduras are the ultimate victors. And I’ll say the same for the people of the United States.
It seems pointless to present your embassy to a foreign country in a language the locals can’t understand.
I did a spot check of US and German–and Venezuelan–embassies, and translations into the local language are provided.
Thinking I might make a supportive phone call, I went to the Honduran Embassy to look for contact info. It’s in Spanish with no English translation afaics.
The Hondurans certainly aren’t making it easy for their friends in America to help them. Diplomacy cough is not my strong suit, but maybe I’ll make a phone call after all.
I hope the Hondurans can outlast Oback Barama and that we can too…
What kind of fool is Obama, anyway? He got egg on his face before, but instead of letting the whole issue die down, he’s going back for a second helping.
What next? Is he going to revive the Skip Gates fiasco? Reprise the KSM screw-up?
Occam, didnt you hear, he has another reset button
“All the newspapers in the United States should be covering this on their front pages. But they are not; and when they did cover the Honduras story they got it exactly (and purposely, I believe) wrong.”
Still in the tank for Obama.
And Obama got a thumbs up from Castro with the passage of Obamacare.
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> I hope the Hondurans can outlast Oback Barama and that we can too…
Indeed. Welcome to the Longest Kiloday in Human History
O’s ego will not allow him to accept defeat at the hands of his lessers, which means everyone. They must be overcome no matter the cost.
The pieces continue to fall into place.
After taking hours to catch up on my blog reading for the past week or so and wading, hip deep, through Mitsu’s apologetics, I wonder how he’d spin this.
LOL! Artfl, what a wonderful comment! Well, you know, reset buttons can be had–just like those “Easy” buttons from Staples, I think it was. Or they can be constructed at whim or need.
I’m thinking that, with Zelaya at least, Obama is moving towards what he and the rest of the Left have claimed to see–and despise–about America for years, for decades even (and which has been bogus until now): American Imperialism. It appears that we are acting like rulers down there. I’m wondering what muscle he used with Karzai in the last day or so. He’s trying to muscle Bibi, too, and probably in ways that even James Baker never contemplated.
I had nearly forgotten about the Honduran caper, since barely anyone has covered it for some time. Again, Neo has her fingers on the pulse.
Yeah, the pieces continue to fall into place. Obama may be a fool, as Occam says. But you know, I can just about hear him singing, “What kind of fool am I?” He appears to be the kind of fool who has a trick up his sleeve at every turn. He keeps snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, and he keeps seeming to know something . . . something . . . about what’s ahead that the rest of us are only guessing at.
It’s enough to make a body lose sleep, I tell you it is.
Well, Neo–and Mary O’Grady. There are a few dogged ones, kind of like Claudia Rosett at the UN. We’re thankful for their like.
Betsy, I think he’s a fool because if he were particularly intelligent (for which I see no evidence), he’d choose his battles more judiciously.
Possibly he has no agenda and is essentially making random decisions because he’s light years over his head. On the other hand, if he’s not practicing stochastic management, but rather is an ideologue, then he’s a nitwit. Why come out of the closet to quack about Honduras? Who cares about Honduras? And what influence does he/we have there? It’s of a piece with the Olympics and Skip Gates fiascoes: risking a lot against adverse odds to gain a little (or nothing, in the Gates case). That is not the hallmark of a clever man.
“Why come out of the closet to quack about Honduras? Who cares about Honduras?”
Could it be a deflection? Get the right looking at what they are doing in Honduras then push hard and fast on ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, immigration reform, cap and trade or whatever is next.
O.B.,
No, not the hallmark of a clever man. Well, good points, all.
OTOH, sometimes apparent randomness has a chaotic purpose, I think. He’s managing to do a lot of damage in this random fashion, and he doesn’t seem rattled. And he’s certainly keeping us guessing.
I think it might be a mistake to assume that having an agenda and practicing stochastic management are mutually exclusive, is all.
How many clever people have we met in our lives whose egotism made them stupid and how many fanatics in history caused their own downfall by irrationality? O is behaving true to form, an uncontrolled ego following a demented ideology that cannot function in the real world.
I suspect the grown-ups at the Copenhagen climate conference did not want anything to do with the pretentious pontificator so they gave him the cold shoulder. They also know that he is going down and don’t want an association with a loser.
I am now listening to Greta interviewing the SC LT Gov about calling a constitutional convention to fight Obamacare. At least we are not going like sheep.
It’s true that Obama is an uncontrolled ego following a demented ideology. But it’s not true that he cannot function in the real world. He is functioning in the real world, and now. I believe his so functioning will come to an end, but not yet. It will do damage first, awful damage.
No, we are not going like sheep. But we are going.
Unless we manage to rise to the struggle. I think one of the first things we need to do is to rid ourselves of the likes of Lindsey Graham (Pfeh!), and others like him. Anyone who thinks that bipartisanship is part of the key is deluded. We need warriors, warriors who understand the nature of the fight.
That’s what I say.
Oh well.
Could it be a deflection? Get the right looking at what they are doing in Honduras then push hard and fast on ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, immigration reform, cap and trade or whatever is next.
Possibly, but I doubt it. How many people are even aware of events in Honduras?
Moreover, I see no signs that Obama is either intelligent or cunning enough to misdirect attention intentionally. And how would one then explain the Olympics, KSM, or Skip Gates fiascoes?
Consistent with my nom de net, I default to the simplest explanation: garden variety stupidity.
I think it might be a mistake to assume that having an agenda and practicing stochastic management are mutually exclusive, is all.
True enough, and a good point.
This is bullying, pure and simple.
I found and copied a few traits from http://www.bullyonline.org/workbully/amibeing.htm to show what I mean, though I’m sure most of Neo’s readers are familiar with these and others. (Interestingly enough, I found the link on Democratic Underground.)
What is bullying?
* constant nit-picking, fault-finding and criticism of a trivial nature – the triviality, regularity and frequency betray bullying; often there is a grain of truth (but only a grain) in the criticism to fool you into believing the criticism has validity, which it does not; often, the criticism is based on distortion, misrepresentation or fabrication
* simultaneous with the criticism, a constant refusal to acknowledge you and your contributions and achievements or to recognise your existence and value
* constant attempts to undermine you and your position, status, worth, value and potential
The key is that bullies choose the weak for their victims. When dealing with a strong individual or country, the erstwhile bully becomes a coward. Russia, Iran, others who won’t be cowed get this latter treatment.
And there’s this, from that thread at Ace of Spades. A commenter writes–
“Most of these people [in the Administration] have never had a real job in their lives. They don’t understand a thing about business, and that includes the President,” says a senior lobbyist for one of the companies that announced the charge. “My CEO sat with the President over lunch with two other CEOs, and each of them tried to explain to the President what this bill would do to our companies and the economy in general. First the President didn’t understand what they were talking about. Then he basically told my boss he was lying. Frankly my boss was embarrassed for him; he clearly had not been briefed and didn’t know what was in the bill.”
I think the senior lobbyist is being WAY to generous with his interpretation of the event. Il Duce was briefed, all right: he just doesn’t give a rat’s ass what it does to our economy, since he loathes us so much. He’s just “stickin’ it to the Man.”
Concerning Il Duce’s motives and methods, well, you have to realize he’s thrown out the Rules of the Game.
Consider: He’s realized, through his shenanigans in Chicago and the tutelage of the ruthless and evil Alinsky, that brute power can get most of his goals accomplished, especially in a nation of fair-play-minded Boy Scouts. He’s taken it to an entirely different level, as seen in his jacking around of Honduras and Israel. He doesn’t give a rat’s ass about the consent of the governed: viz. the Socialized Medicine rape of the nation.
I’ve seen a lot of this in the Left in the last several years. Remember when Gordon Brown was pronounced a Dead PM Walking? and they all said “he MUST resign; no PM with the poll numbers and detestation he’s earned has ever clung to power!” But he did. Like the Undead, he’s still clinging relentlessly to #10 Downing Street.
With the socialization of our medical establishment, we kept saying ‘oh, they HAVE to give up now! SURELY they’ll see this is not wanted!”
Comrades, they don’t give a rat’s hairy ass what we want, and they never have. We’re in the unscrupulous hands of a gang of thugs who will do what they want, when they want to, and gloat when they force us against our will — it’s what they live for. You can’t appeal to a conscience they don’t have, or a sense of fair play, OR any loyalty to the ideals of free citizens and democracy.
They are the enemies of all that. Power is their crack, and they’ll defend it at all costs. The evil Alinsky, Il Duce’s tutor, was upfront about it, screaming at his acolytes that the whole point of being a “community organizer” was to garner POWER, not to “help the poor.”
The Honduras miscalculations easily typify the weaknesses of both the President and his administration. Honduras was an easy call for even a mediocre POTUS. Obama didn’t measure up to even that standard. He blew it. Then, rather than minimize the damage and move on, Obama has now spent 10 months trying to regain control of the narrative via bullying and punishing Honduras. Laughably inept; detestably despicable: ladies and gentlemen … the President of the United States!
The nation’s in the very best of hands. David Axelrod once owned a Honda.
“”and gloat when they force us against our will – it’s what they live for.””
There is a seething rage just under the surface in Obama. We see glimpses of it all the time. We need not be afraid of it, because it holds the key to his undoing and freedom loving America getting back to its feet. This man is going to have to be poked, prodded and ridiculed in the cleverest of ways to allow that mask to slip big time for the world to see.
If done successfully, we could see Obama, Progressives and the politics of division all go down in one big heap.
e’d choose his battles more judiciously.
thats assuming he gets to pick his battles. as a collectivist, he does not get to choose that way, and thats one of the reasons for his stress. his desire to rule over his desire to serve ideology.
By the way… if you gave me the power to kill the incompetent in the DMV, post office, and MTA… i would bet that competency would pick up just as it did under el duche…
that is, the threat of death is the missing motivator in state efficiency…
while the threat of failure is all that needs motivate a capitalist, as there is no need for a system to mete out judgments.
capitalism succeeds in that failures lead to success, and the other system fails, as sans perfection, failure leads to succession…
this is why the man who conceptualized boom and bust for Stalin, was killed, then later celebrated…
(as were so many others. their momentary failure was enough to erase all future potential and realized success)
What no one ever figured out was why Obama pursued such a stupid strategy in the first place. After all, what the Hondurans did was pursuant to and in conformity with Honduran law, which Obama said (vis-a-vis Iran) is an internal matter that the USA should not concern itself with. But he pursued and, apparently, still pursuing the strategy with a vengeance and Mary O’Grady is still reporting on the story because it won’t die (and because she is one of the greatest reporters in the world). What we can take from this news item is the fact that Obama will not let go, no matter how foolish his actions make him appear and after his goal is no longer a reality.
A few weeks ago Obama manufactured a crisis over the zoning approval of new housing units in Jerusalem. The consensus of what I have been reading is that Obama wants to unseat Netanyahu using this “crisis” as the excuse. If that is the case it doesn’t wash as the Israelis are apparently solidifying their support for a policy that will continue building homes in Jerusalem. But, it is creating a dispute between the countries that can only weaken Israel in the eyes of the Arabs. Looking at shameful policy Obama is following in Honduras and the fact that it is not coming to an end, even after the election that would have unseated the prior president who tried to usurp power, one can only ponder how long and with what consequences Obama will pursue this stupid policy with Israel. Of course, the drama plays out on a larger stage and has already resulted in the loss of life in Israel. It also does more than create a little sunlight between the USA and Israel, it can be construed as negating the long standing alliance between us. Thankfully, the Arabs at their recent conference did not agree to join (at least overtly) in starting a new war against Israel. But, at the very least they must be planning on how they will be able to co-exist with a not very friendly nuclear Iran as their neighbor. And, I suspect, they are scratching their collective heads as Obama’s policy puts them at great risk in combating any moves by Iran.
My take is that Obama will continue to impose impossible demands on Israel, Netanyahu will try but will be unable to meet them, and Obama will use non-compliance as a pretext to stand aloof from the mideast. I suspect that if the world market perceives a more unstable mideast we could soon see a substantial rise in the price of oil.
When it comes to assessing Obama’s foreign policy one can only conclude that, “Stupid is as stupid does!”
COLOMBIA
Is Colombia next? Pelosi and McDermott have it out for Colombia’s legitimate government, and appear to be FARC sympathizers. There’s apparently captured FARC and Venezuelan documentation that alludes to that.
I have been reading is that Obama wants to unseat Netanyahu using this “crisis” as the excuse.
Obama is putting himself in the position where he doesn’t have to help someone that is going to be in trouble soon (one way or another).
CIA: Iran capable of producing nukes
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/30/cia-iran-has-capability-to-produce-nuke-weapons/
EXCLUSIVE: Iran Nuclear Scientist Defects to U.S. In CIA ‘Intelligence Coup’
Shahram Amiri Disappeared Last June in Saudi Arabia, Reportedly Now Resettled in the United States
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/iran-nuclear-scientist-defects-us-cia-intelligence-coup/story?id=10231729
I said a long time ago, Iran was the last block in the close the door and make a whole lot of games a lot harder world wide..
I said turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan… with Iran, would put an end to the land bridge from the middle east and Africa to certain other countries that have been supplying them with weapons and compete with them in selling raw materials.
our efforts ended with Obama election and Afghanistan. i would say that giving Iran a boost in capability has created the condition for the last piece of that puzzle to be self fulfilling (which in the absence of such, would not be possible).
however i said there are a lot of places which are warming up to do something… given that they know what the responses would be, given our new leader.
that is, Isreal will not let iran finish making nukes.. iran having nukes opens up false flag. and in south america, they realize we wont go to war full out to save columbia or mexico…
right now we have an ineffective leadership who has no idea how to lead and be effective if it wanted to be… (irony that their incompetence has made them a success).
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When this crisis flared-up, there were numerous reports in foreign newspapers about representatives from SEIU working the public relations campaign just outside Honduras’ border.
Funny, that isn’t mentioned much in domestic news reports. Is it?
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Kudos to you Neo for keeping the Venezuela, (indeed, the Central American), issue on the radar.
For too long the C.A. peoples have suffered U.S. hegemonic influence and right wing dictators oppressing the people in the name of anti-communism.
The left constantly beat up on Reagan for meddling in the 80’s.
It’s ironic and tragic that now that we have our own marxist in chief the U.S. continues to work against the best interests of the people of C.A.
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“Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.” – Hanlon’s Razor.
I’ve quoted you and linked to you here: http://consul-at-arms2.blogspot.com/2010/04/re-remember-honduras-obama-does-and-he.html
Thanks for the update on this important story. It should indeed be front page headlines. Hondurenos have a difficult enough time as it is without imperialist intrusion into their politics. Zelaya was ousted according to Honduras law, even if the manner of his physical escort out of the country may be legally open to question.
If you like adventure, Honduras is very diverse in natural features and could follow a model similar to Costa Rica– if we let them follow their constitution and they can get corruption under control.
All radicals know that the stars align only rarely and they must strike hard and fast to have any chance of the change they seek. They are striking hard and fast now.
this page was so what i’ve been looking for the purpose of! I found this blog bookmarked from a friend of mine. i may also share it. cheers again!