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Obama Special Envoy To Cairo Calling For Mubarak To Stay, Uncovered To Be On Mubarak Payroll
It is a Monday, and like any day ending in "y" we get another Obama administration foreign relations screw up. Today's edition comes from President Obama's special envoy to Cairo, Frank Wisner, who over the weekend made waves with his call urging for Hosni Mubarak to remain president. The glitch, however, is that supposedly unbeknownst to the administration and to the journalist cadre, Mr. Wisner works for litigation firm Patton Boggs, which according to the Independent: "openly boasts that it advises "the Egyptian military, the Egyptian Economic Development Agency, and has handled arbitrations and litigation on the [Mubarak] government's behalf in Europe and the US". Wisner's words, now making the rounds, and which appear to have infuriated Egypt's opposition just as things were going back to normal: "President Mubarak's continued leadership is critical: it's his opportunity to write his own legacy." In other words, yet another huge conflict of interest by a man paid by none other than the president of Egypt, which has "called into question Mr Obama's judgement, as well as that of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton", and puts Obama's (in)ability to handle foreign conflicts, in an even more questionable light.
From The Independent:
Mr Wisner is a retired State Department 36-year career diplomat – he served as US ambassador to Egypt, Zambia, the Philippines and India under eight American presidents. In other words, he was not a political appointee. But it is inconceivable Hillary Clinton did not know of his employment by a company that works for the very dictator which Mr Wisner now defends in the face of a massive democratic opposition in Egypt.
So why on earth was he sent to talk to Mubarak, who is in effect a client of Mr Wisner's current employers?
Patton Boggs states that its attorneys "represent some of the leading Egyptian commercial families and their companies" and "have been involved in oil and gas and telecommunications infrastructure projects on their behalf". One of its partners served as chairman of the US-Egyptian Chamber of Commerce promoting foreign investment in the Egyptian economy. The company has also managed contractor disputes in military-sales agreements arising under the US Foreign Military Sales Act. Washington gives around $1.3bn (£800m) a year to the Egyptian military.
Mr Wisner joined Patton Boggs almost two years ago – more than enough time for both the White House and the State Department to learn of his company's intimate connections with the Mubarak regime. The New York Times ran a glowing profile of Mr Wisner in its pages two weeks ago – but mysteriously did not mention his ties to Egypt.
Nicholas Noe, an American political researcher now based in Beirut, has spent weeks investigating Mr Wisner's links to Patton Boggs. Mr Noe is also a former researcher for Hillary Clinton and questions the implications of his discoveries.
"The key problem with Wisner being sent to Cairo at the behest of Hillary," he says, "is the conflict-of-interest aspect... More than this, the idea that the US is now subcontracting or 'privatising' crisis management is another problem. Do the US lack diplomats?
"Even in past examples where presidents have sent someone 'respected' or 'close' to a foreign leader in order to lubricate an exit," Mr Noe adds, "the envoys in question were not actually paid by the leader they were supposed to squeeze out!"
Patton Boggs maintains an "affiliate relationship" with Zaki Hashem, one of Egypt's most prominent legal firms. It was founded in 1953 and Zaki Hashem himself was a cabinet minister under Mubarak's predecessor, President Anwar Sadat, and later became head of the Egyptian Society for International Law.
The Independent is understandably scratching its head over this most recent diplomatic faux pas:
We still do not know exactly what kind of "expertise" he has bestowed upon the dictator of Egypt. But his remarks at the weekend leave no room to doubt he advised the old man to cling on to power for a few more months. The vast network of companies with family connections to Mubarak's regime is, of course, one of the targets of the pro-democracy demonstrators in Egypt.
A spokesman for the State Department said he "presumed" Mrs Clinton knew of Mr Wisner's employment by Patton Boggs and the firm's links with the Mubarak government, but refused to comment on any conflict of interest for the envoy. A spokesman for Patton Boggs could not be reached yesterday.
On the other hand, if Egyptian protesters managed to forgive the "Made in America" signs on teargas canisters used against demonstrators in recent riots, they surely will find nothing wrong with this foreign relations snafu from an administration which is becoming known for nothing but.
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Some of you people seem under the illusion that the POTUS and/or SecoState actually run amerikan foreign affairs at the ground level where the rocks meet the skulls shall we say.
This is your first and most harmfull mistake.
The bagmen and enforcers are not and have not been for many decades the elected.
While Obama is a stooge and clown he is no more of one that the previous several clowns that bray and paw the earth for your amusement.
Out in the world the real work goes on by those you never see on the talk shows.
Those that talk don't know and those that know don't talk.
This wisner,jr. is a harmless bag man and let slip in a moment of euphoria part of the real game afoot.
You are suckers and fools if you look at the elected for clues.
Obama doesn't know what he wants, he doesn't have a clue.
Well Obama is just a CIA puppet like all the rest and doesnt dare step out of line or he'll be JFK'd too.
and the glove puppet is nothing without the hand that animates it.
the puppet distracts from the hand's agenda - focus on the hand.
It's all adding up to something.... something that can only be destroyed by fire! - Pete Townsend
"Meet the new boss...
Same as the old boss..."
Pete Townsend
I know, I can not get that song out of my head (at least townshend wrote it and not maurice gibb)
The Obummer Song
"There's nothing in the streets,
Looks any different to me,
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye,
And the parting on the left,
Are now parting on the right,
The puppet Obummer appeared overnight."
Pete Townsend
That is a serious possibility. Public charges as defined by the US political ideology are an entry door to comfortable positions in the private sector.
Dozens of examples in energy, army, diplomacy. A large number of public servants build their public carrier with the thought of turning their public charge into an opportunity to secure excellent positions in the private sector.
In the end, you might end with a lack of diplomats as most of them are tied to the private sector, open to conflicts of interests, the rest being either stuck in the antichamber of the private sector waiting for a position and thus, not ready to blow up their opportunity to secure a high profile job in the private sector by angering their future boss; or unproficient.
I think there is a fight within the administration between those who want to support the pro-democracy protestors and be on the right side of history (including obama) vs the others. Kerry said on sunday tv that wisner did not deliver the message that he was told to deliver.
kerry is a paid-up member of the secret society of glove puppets.
Skull & Bones: The Secret Society That Unites John Kerry and President Bush
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0122-10.htm
focus. on. the. hand.
Why did Hillary Clinton "subcontracted" this crisis management?
The article did not explain what are the "real" links between Misner, a jew, and Israel. Which makes you think which interests is he trying to protect: US or Israel. Oh, wait... they are one of the same.
Misner could be the perfect Israel's "Trojan Horse."
Obama = America?
sorry for you luck Pussies!, 300 million hand guns and what you going to rob a 7 / 11
at least arabs are standing tall!
SOMEbody find a community for Obama to organize, pleeze!
I wonder if he's rethinking that Cairo speech.
Real regime change in the ME comes by the muzzle.. not stone throwing. One of the reasons it wasn't going anywhere.. no gunfire. Wer'e WAY past the stage of peaceful protest.. not with Us and Foreign dicatators firmly in place. Pass another pretzel plz.
One could almost hear Mubarak laugh as the stone throwing commenced and the tanks rolled in. Hug tank photo op now move on folks.
Could be instigated by the opponents of Obama to try to let him look even more bad and try to oust him from Presidency.
Lets see what Hilary has to say about this...
Snafu - indeed, spot on.
DavidC
http://www.democracynow.org/
2/7/11
.
http://www.democracynow.org/seo/2011/2/7/the_empires_bagman_us_ambassador_frank
.
Frank Wisner in Cairo The Empire's BagmanBy VIJAY PRASHAD
http://www.counterpunch.org/prashad02022011.html
Nice Link blindman, +1
Excellent Prashad article on CounterPunch. I think I read that Friday...
A. Cockburn's site is indispensable reading...
In an unprecedented move, apparently one that has never happened before, nearly all U.S. Ambassadors to all nations have been called back to Washington for a summit conference this week.
http://goo.gl/fGcae
Needs confirmation but something big afoot if true.
Clinton convenes mass meeting of US ambassadors
(AP) – Jan 31, 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is convening an unprecedented mass meeting of U.S. ambassadors.
The top envoys from nearly all of America's 260 embassies, consulates and other posts in more than 180 countries will be gathering at the State Department beginning on Monday. Officials say it's the first such global conference.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jy_YaBEZhgyfaj9iBGzH_zqct7Tg?docId=299bd50d25dc4b8e8172542ca00a00db
and when they gather hillary will ask..
" does anyone in the room have any idea concerning
MY job description? someone, ... anyone, throw me a bone, besides
soliciting kickbacks and peddling influence. brainstorm people,
think outside the box. what the fuck is my job? "
a hand is raised, "I thought your job was to give yourself to our chinese masters." A voice from the back row, "hell, that'll never work."
CIA--Enron--AIG Looting Exec Wisner?
You mean the long time CIA operative, former Enron and AIG looting executive Frank Wisner Jr.?...
Son of CIA founding henchman and Alan Dulles (Wall Street bankster) pal Frank Wisner Sr.??
CIA <=> Wall Steet...
Newspeak evolves, the word envoy now includes the term Special Agent...
"Our" Secretary of State, Ms. Hillary, having poor judgement when it comes to all things Mideast, and related to American foreign trade? (Much less, heavens forbid, a country immediately next door to the Secretary of State's REAL paymasters, that so-called "democratic" state on the Med coast just north of Sinai?)
Poor Hill, she always was jealous of Schumer (closer to the AIPAC war lobby than even she was), and Pelosi http://www.creators.com/conservative/pat-buchanan/the-aipac-girl.html and now this - some Egypt/israel lobby money she didn't have her finger in!
Obama did promise that his administration was going to be more transparent.
dp