President Barack Obama and Egypt President
Hosni Mubarak:
Many Egyptians find the fact that Mubarak has
outlasted five
U.S. presidents to be a sign that the Egyptian
political system
is in a sad state of repair. Using America as a foil, the
author,
Muhammad Hammad, makes it clear that
he thinks its
time for
Mubarak and his clan to relinquish
power.
Al Araby, Egypt
Five U.S. Presidencies
is Too Long for Mubarak
"It might come as a shock to
contemplate that Barack Obama is the fifth U.S. president during President Hosni
Mubarak's reign, which spans from 1981 to today Four of them are alive, all won
at the ballot box, all left at the end of their presidential terms - and none
altered the U.S. Constitution to lengthen their terms nor stayed on to
accommodate the whims of his sons!
By Muhammad Hammad
Translated By Nicolas Dagher
May 19, 2009
The presumed heir apparent: Gamal Mubarak is Hosni Mubarak's right hand man, but denies interest in leading Egypt. Few believe him.
I have no doubt that
President Husni Mubarak is eager to meet President Barack Obama on his upcoming
visit to the United States. I have no doubt that the President’s briefcase will
contain documents on a number of issues that he wishes to discuss with the new resident
of the White House. I'm not stating the unknown when I say that the president [Mubarak]
is busy preparing his paperwork to submit to his American counterpart.
Let us leave the president to
his preoccupations. I find myself more in thrall with contemplating the number
of U.S. presidents blessed by meeting President Mubarak since he took the helm
of the presidency at the service of the Egyptian state. As everyone knows, this
is a very important post.
What comes to mind is a plethora
of unanswered questions, such as what great accomplishments each of these
presidents had during their time in office. And here's another: Why, after all
of these presidents have left office, the Egyptian president remains in his
seat!
I had to delve into the archives
since we're talking about a long period of time. The U.S. president is elected
every four years - and as soon as he settles in at the White House, he finds the
he must quickly face the electorate to justify his policies, governing style
and accomplishments: he must answer for what his program has achieved - and has
failed to achieve.
It might come as
a shock to contemplate that Barack Obama is the fifth U.S. president during President
Hosni Mubarak's reign, which spans from 1981 to today. And perhaps you'll be surprised
to know that at the very moment that the two presidents' hands intertwine on
the steps of the White House, President Mubarak will have “outlasted” four U.S.
heads of state. They are alive, all won at the ballot box, all left at the end
of their presidential terms - and none altered the U.S. Constitution to lengthen
their terms nor stayed on to accommodate the whims of his sons!
Posted by
WORLDMEETS.US
Editors' Note: Due to his grandson's death, Mubarak has canceled his visit to the White House, so will meet President Obama when he arrives in Egypt on June3.]
On the fingers of our right
hands, and discounting President Jimmy Carter, who met Mubarak when he was
still vice president to President Sadat, may Allah rest his soul, let us begin
our countdown with Republican President Ronald Reagan, who entered office in
the same year as Egypt's Mubarak. Reagan spent eight years as president, from
1981 to 1988, and was followed by Republican President George H.W. Bush, who governed
from 1989 to 1993. Then young Democrat President Bill Clinton was elected, who was
in charge from 1993 to 2001, when the elections again resulted in a Bush - Republican
George W. Bush, who led from 2001 to 2008. So when the expected meeting of the
two presidents occurs, newly-elected Barack Obama will have spent just over a
hundred days at the helm of the United States.
In the past 28 years and a
hundred days, the United States has changed and the world with along with it.
There have been five U.S. presidents, three which had two terms of four years
each, during which they changed policies and government agencies, certain of
them were punished. America entered several wars and militarily intervened in more
than one region, it resolved some lingering problems and began to address new
ones - and if anything is clear it's this: nothing ever moves in our region
unless America moves it!
In the past 28 years and a
hundred days, the world has known five U.S. presidents, four British prime
ministers; three French presidents; and Israel went from its 18th to its 30th
government. But during this entire period, the world has known only a single
Egyptian president!!
America's
living presidents: left to right: Bush, Obama, Bush,
Clinton
and Carter, outlasted one and all by Hosni Mubarak,
Egypt's
president,
who has been in office since 1981.
Coincidently yesterday, I saw
the first photos taken of the five presidents from Carter to Bush Jr. - and
those pictures show the immense difference between photos taken before and
after U.S. presidents enter the White House [photo above]. Without exception,
each entered the Oval Office with coal black hair and came out with hair of white,
with the enormous responsibility of the office etched in their faces with
wrinkles.
Meanwhile, our President
still looks young at eighty!
