The Last Refuge Of An Egyptian Scoundrel

President of Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, with Egypt convulsed by riots, addressed his fellow Egyptians today. Many expected that he would be announcing that he would step down, and that the military would step in - that would have been the school solution. Instead, our good friend Hosni adopted to drape himself in the last refuge of a Middle Eastern scoundrel. He played the America card, saying that he intended to stay in power and refused to bow to "foreign interference" in Egyptian government. He accompanied that announcement with a promise to capture and punish law breakers.

This makes a true revolution in Egypt ever more likely - and that is the worst possible scenario for the West, not to mention Israel. It is past time for the Obama administration to be discussing a military takeover with the Egyptian Chief of Staff. I hope that they are. And it is past time that the Obama administration come out unconditionally in support of demands for a transition to democracy with respect for individual rights and with time for secular opposition parties to coallesce. We provide a significant amount of foreign aid to Egypt and the Egyptian military. That is a card the administration needs to be playing.

What worries me is not just that the Muslim Brotherhood might take power in Egypt, but that if the Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, is any indication, that the Obama administration will be enablers.