Abbas Is A "Third-World Tyrant"--So He Can Expect No Trouble From Obama

Not that this should really come as a surprise to anyone:

Nabil Amr, a long-time political ally of Mahmoud Abbas, has described the Palestinian Authority president as a "third-world tyrant."

Amr also joined a long list of top Fatah officials who have accused Abbas of stealing the recent elections for the faction's Central Committee and Revolutionary Council.

Apparently it actually does come as a surprise to some Palestinian Arabs:

Amr's attack on Abbas came as a surprise to many Palestinians and is a sign of the continued squabbling within Fatah.

That may be related to:

A decrease in the belief that corruption exists in Abbas-controlled PA institutions from 72% a year ago to 68% today.

That's a 5% drop, most likely because of the improvement in the West Bank economy--due more to outside investment and Israeli cooperation than to anything Mahmoud "sit and wait for Obama to pressure Israel"Abbas has done. Forget about his not talking about peace--when is the last time you actually heard anything about Abbas talking about policies and goals for the Palestinian people as a whole?

If Abbas really did steal the election, that puts him in the same category with Ahmadinejad.

And we all know how worked up Obama got over that.

As for Honduras' Zelaya, attempting but failing to steal an election will still put you in the company of Ahmadinejad and Abbas--so he's still good.

The point is that US policy under Obama is protect the status quo, so:

• Hondurans must accept back as leader the man who tried to abrogate their constitution
• US reaction to Ahamdinejad's fake election was muted at best
• Obama will push Abbas and Netanyahu to the 'peace' table, regardless of the corruption and incompetence of Abbas.

Far from damaging Abbas in the eyes of the US--or the world, for that matter--being called a "third world tyrant" puts him in the same category as Honduras' Zelaya.

Which means Abbas is sitting pretty.

Oh, and where is Amr now that he denounced Abbas?

The official said that Amr later apologized for personally insulting Abbas and announced that he was quitting all his jobs and leaving the country.

Former PA prime minister Ahmed Qurei (Abu Ala) also criticized Abbas, but got a better deal:

Qurei has since refrained from repeating the allegations, especially after Abbas compensated him by making sure he was elected to the PLO's Executive Committee.

And so it goes...

Crossposted on Soccer Dad

Technorati Tag: Abbas.