Back in June, in response to the eviction from power of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya by order of the country's Supreme Court--Obama made clear that a small country's law does not alone define legality:
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday the coup that ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was illegal and would set a "terrible precedent" of transition by military force unless it was reversed.
"We believe that the coup was not legal and that President Zelaya remains the president of Honduras, the democratically elected president there," Obama told reporters after an Oval Office meeting with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.
Zelaya, in office since 2006, was overthrown in a dawn coup on Sunday after he angered the judiciary, Congress and the army by seeking constitutional changes that would allow presidents to seek re-election beyond a four-year term.
The Honduran Congress named an interim president, Roberto Micheletti, and the country's Supreme Court said it had ordered the army to remove Zelaya.
It was not so much a question of law that seemed to concern Obama, nor was it an issue of precedent--since it was clear Zelaya had attempted to bypass and usurp the rule of law in trying to force an opportunity for his re-election. We hope Obama was more aware of the circumstance here before his condemnation than he was when he mocked Officer Crowley.
What seemed to be the issue in Honduras was the upsetting of the status quo.
Why else would there be an uproar in the White House leading to the summoning of Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren to Washington:
Washington issued another diplomatic protest over Israeli conduct in East Jerusalem on Monday, its second in as many weeks.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also denounced the evictions publicly on Monday, terming them "deeply regrettable" during a joint press conference in Washington with Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh. She said the evictions violated Israel's commitments under the road map and would impede progress toward peace, adding that the United States would not recognize any unilateral changes to the status quo in Jerusalem. [emphasis added]
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman summoned Michael Oren, Israel's ambassador to Washington, to tell him that the United States views Sunday's eviction of two Palestinian families from homes in East Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood as a "provocative" and "unacceptable" act that violates Israel's obligations under the road map peace plan.
Oren responded by saying that the buildings in question have been Jewish-owned since before Israel's founding, and that a court ordered the families' evictions because they had violated the terms of their leases.
Apparently, while Jews can be evicted from 'illegal' outposts--Palestinian Arabs can stay illegally wherever is convenient for them.
Apparently, only Jews are capable of 'impeding progress towards peace'--never mind the refusal of Saudi Arabia to play ball with Obama's request for gestures or the further radicalization of Fatah.
Are the actions of Honduras and Israel really 'unacceptable'--or do they just get in the way of the US? Obama doesn't like it when the status quo gets upset. Maybe that is why he has not made an issue of the Iran election.
Technorati Tag: Israel and Gaza and Hamas and Operation Cast Lead.
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