There are reasons to be deeply suspicious of at least some of the demonstrators against Morsi — such as those who superimposed his face onto a Star of David — but if Hamas-linked CAIR and sinister Islamic supremacist operatives such as Hamas-linked CAIR’s Hussam Ayloush and Khomeinist Mohamed Elibiary are upset about this revolution, it’s a very, very good sign.
“American Islamists Rally Behind MB Amid Egypt Protests,” by John Rossomando for IPT News, July 2 (thanks to Pamela Geller):
Millions of Egyptians are in the streets demanding the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood regime in Egypt for their totalitarian theocratic policies. But many of America’s leading Islamists are sticking by Morsi and condemning the protesters on social media.
“Only in Egypt, Mubarak supporters, military rulers, anti-Islamists, confused leftists, anarchists, & some well-meaning activists undo a democratic election,” Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)-Los Angeles Executive Director Hussam Ayloush wrote on his Twitter feed Saturday, linking to a longer post on his Facebook page. “This is not about how successful of a president Morsi is, it is about understanding democracy and accepting its outcome as the choice of the majority. A strong opposition is needed to have good checks and balances, but through legitimate and non violent means only. Do you really believe that fulools [remnants of the Mubarak regime] are seeking democracy?”
Of the millions who took to the streets, only “some” are “well-meaning activists” in Ayloush’s judgment. And he seems to think elections are the only acceptable time for citizens to petition their government. Living in California, he should know better. Americans can try to recall their elected officials, but Egyptians apparently shouldn’t enjoy the same power.
Egypt is in economic crisis, with basic services like electricity, fuel and water in short supply. But the millions in the street aren’t really angry about their perception that Morsi isn’t making life better, Ayloush wrote. They only want to restore the previous government.
“How can ppl demanding more democracy in Egypt join hands w/ those who support the return of Mubarak or military rule? Hypocrisy!”
Ayloush and his fellow Islamists have strained to explain that political Islam is compatible with democracy, but the Egyptian experience has further called this into question.
Like Ayloush, former CAIR Tampa Executive Director Ahmed Bedier — still a prolific fundraiser for the group — questioned protesters’ motives and wrote that frustrated Egyptians should hold their powder for three more years until there’s another election.
“Dear Egypt: In any real democracy, political leadership is decided by the ballot box, not the street. If you don’t like the current government, go vote, win a majority in parliament and create a new government,” Bedier wrote on his Facebook page. “Two and half years after overthrowing Mubarak and military rule, the Egyptian people revolt to end democracy and bring back Mubarak’s Military men to power.”
Mohamed Elibiary, a Homeland Security adviser to President Obama, tweeted on June 28 that “Overthrowing #Morsi thru undemocratic means, whether protest or coup, is unacceptable.”
Instead of inspiring openness and tolerance in Egyptian society, the Muslim Brotherhood has pushed Egyptian society to its breaking point as the group has moved to consolidate power and transition Egypt into being a theocratic state subject to the group’s interpretation of Islamic law.
The optimism even Christians and liberal Muslims felt in the wake of Mubarak’s fall has given way to the realization that the Arab Spring has become an Islamist winter.
Morsi pitted Egyptian against Egyptian after seizing emergency powers and ramming through a theocratic constitution while using intimidation tactics against opponents last November and December. That episode helped to establish the pattern of repression and intimidation that characterized Morsi’s year in power.
The Muslim Brotherhood notably condemned the U.N.’s declaration on women’s rights in March, saying it would “lead to the complete disintegration of society” and bring about the moral cohesion of Islamic societies.
The March arrest of comedian Bassem Youssef, aka “Egypt’s Jon Stewart, for “insulting Islam” and President Morsi on his show “al-Bermaneg” drove home the Muslim Brotherhood’s totalitarian nature even for Western liberals who had previously applauded the regime.
In an April post, Elibiary questioned the legitimacy of public outcry over Youssef’s arrest. “A lot of AstroTurf advocacy in media on this,” Elibiary wrote on his Twitter feed. In politics, “AstroTurf” is a cynical term describing well-funded campaigns deceptively designed to appear grass-roots driven.