Obama Tried To Stop Honduras Coup

Buried in a Wall Street Journal article is the news that President Obama tried to stop Sunday's coup in Honduras:

The Obama administration and members of the Organization of American States had worked for weeks to try to avert any moves to overthrow President Zelaya, said senior U.S. officials. Washington's ambassador to Honduras, Hugo Llorens, sought to facilitate a dialogue between the president's office, the Honduran parliament and the military.

The efforts accelerated over the weekend, as Washington grew increasingly alarmed. "The players decided, in the end, not to listen to our message," said one U.S. official involved in the diplomacy. On Sunday, the U.S. embassy here tried repeatedly to contact the Honduran military directly, but was rebuffed. Washington called the removal of President Zelaya a coup and said it wouldn't recognize any other leader.

Obama said in a statement that he was "deeply concerned," and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Zelaya's arrest by the military should be condemned.

"I call on all political and social actors in Honduras to respect democratic norms, the rule of law and the tenets of the Inter-American Democratic Charter," Obama's statement read.

President Manuel Zelaya's replacement, congressionally designated successor Roberto Micheletti, mentioned the American president by name in response to a threat from Venezuela's Hugo Chavez: "Nobody, not Barack Obama and much less Hugo Chavez, has any right to threaten this country."

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Comments

[forza]

vote the man out not kick him out

NY and Honduras are going down the same road

[Superb1]

Shame on Huff-Po for calling this a coup. It is NOT. This was about not letting the former president bend and break the laws of his country.

[marshhen]

thank you!

[gbrooks]

Zelaya is no innocent here, members of his own party were moving to impeach him. For one thing, he was trying to change their constitution in regards to term limits. What would you think if Bush had done that?

He had refused to distribute ballots so the people could vote on such a change to the constitution and thus, clashed with the military. I read in another news source that he was actually trying to replace their constitution entirely.

We don't hear about it in our press, but thousands of people took to the streets to demand that he be thrown out, and strangely enough, the people got their way with the military's help.

Should they have let him stay in office long enough to completely obliterate their constitution?

In regards to some highlights of his rule, it's a mixed bag:

--ordered TV/radio stations to broadcast an interview favorable to him
--a whole mess o' his appointees were found guilty of corruption
--he wanted the US to decriminalize drugs to alleviate violence in his country (good, in my opinion)

Anyways, bottom line is the dude violated their constitution and got the boot for it. I have no problem with that, if that's truly the case.

[SayWhatYouWill]

Zelaya might be a bad guy, but how does that justify a coup?

Also, do you have a link to any news articles that support your claim that "thousands of people took to the streets to demand he be thrown out"?

[vinny]

who said it was a coup? (oh, obama and chavez did)

Zelaya acted directly against the "rule of law", defied his congress and supreme court, and was consequenty removed from office...

[ftaco2004]

Huffington post ultimtate comeback: where is your source?

As if opening up another screen and google is really hard. In some cases, the comeback is warranted, but most times, you sound rude and ignorant.

[brian662]

Where do you get your facts. I need to read some good fiction

[IndepBob]

It would be helpful if you knew what you were talking about. He was NOT trying directly to amend term limits. Zelaya was completely within his rights to call for a "consultative referendum"; and as he noted last week, it wouldn't extend his time in office. Rather, it would express public opinion on whether he should be allowed to run again after an intervening term.

By the way, the Honduran constitution was forced upon the country by Ronald Reagan in 1982, so it's not like it was a document derived from the consensus of the populace.

[culturevue]

I'm glad to see someone based their statements on facts. I can't believe some of these comments.

[TomInJax]

Got to have 2 thirds of the states ratify any changes to the constitution.

[SangZe]

Oh, our president is so strong. The U.S. no longer has any power beyond its military might. LOL

[Theo67]

Yes, thanks to the shenanigans of Bush and Cheney, the moral standing and international prestige and power of the US is not what it once was. Thankfully, President Obama is turning that around - but it will take time. By the way - this Honduras incident is not about military might, it's about the rule of law and due governmental process.

[JakeMontero]

let me guess, he offered to sit with both sides and talk after singing Kumbaya

[tellthetruthalways]

He wasn't successful like Bush in Iraq. Remember "Mission Accomplished?" Or look at the great victory Bush had in North Korea. Or in Venezuela? You guys are beyond silly. The president took the right position. Now he will use diplomacy and sanctions to bring back legitimate government. And you know what, diplomacy unlike war won't bankrupt this country any further.

[AntonioSosa]

This is not mine, but I agree with this comment -- "After not disagreeing with tyrant of Iran in shamming the recent elections, the good people of Honduras who sensed a complete takeover of democratic rule had this tryant got his way, they overtook his office and Obama complained, thus supporting another dictatorial regime hiding behind a so called democracy. Hillary, like the good little jackbooted brown shirt for obama, agreed.

Real simple folks, if Chavez wants to mobilize his military forces, you know what happened is actually a good thing for freedom. "

[DestinationsUnknown]

mobilize his military forces

lol

how about cutting off the oil spicket

my goodness

[tellthetruthalways]

Do you realize that Chavez was elected in a fair and free elections?

[anothervoice]

Every time?... And what about his amendments to their constitution regarding term limits? And I don't see a strengthening of their democracy, either. Just President for Life, it seems...

[PiscesPrincess]

oh yeah, sure lol. the ballot boxes were stuffed.

[IndepBob]

Completely 200 pounds of baloney in a 50 pound sack.

[Opus Loki]

Our President and his administration tried to stop the coup because we are a democratic republic. No democracy can support the coup of another no matter what the political reason. The reason we had not spoken harshly on Iran until it got more gruesome is because they actually did hold a democratic election. We don't openly back a coup or a cessesion as in supporting Taiwan breaking from China. We could not agree with the Hoduran president because what he was trying to do was against their constitution.
I think IcedTea63 summmed up a lot of these posts though. AESOP said "Any excuse serves a coward"...­I hope we don't have a hurricane in the US any time soon, you'll blame that on POTUS as well.

[anothervoice]

That sounds right to me. Democracy cannot be an optional thing, you support the democratic process or you don't. And if an election is rigged, it is up to the governed (the people) to change it, right? Just askin'...

[PiscesPrincess]

thank you. some reason here for a change. the tr011s came out of the woodwork when they smelled bl.00d

[SayWhatYouWill]

For those that think that the ouster of Zelaya was done legally or was the correct action, please name one country or world leader that supports the actions taken by the military???

Thanks.

I'll check back next week to see if you guys find any by them.

[fame]

Sometimes words aren't enough...

[KLordsha]

The Republicans create an ad that says This is a repudiation for the President's spending in 5....4...3­...2..

[BannedNBoston]

Some elections are stolen
Five months later, in November 2005, an “audition” was held with Mexican presidential candidates before members of the US Chamber of Commerce in Mexico City. All candidates were asked whether they would open the energy sector in Mexico, especially the nationalized oil company, Pemex, to US exploitation.
Felipe Calderón received resounding applause when he answered that he is in favor of private investment in Pemex, and of weakening the labor unions. He also received applause when he stated that he supported George Bush’s guest worker program and that he agreed the border needed to be secured or militarized. Obrador said that he would not allow risk capital investment in Pemex—but hastened to add that other sectors would be opened to investment.
Calderón won the audition,
http://www.projectcensored.org/top-stories/articles/18-mexicos-stolen-election/

[magic3400]

excuse me while I yawn....

[LeftLeanWing]

excuse me while i Thank You

[SayWhatYouWill]

To better understand everything going on in Honduras, you have to first understand the immense contrast between rich and poor in their society. Zelaya was a major threat to the wealthy of Honduras. Entire industries are owned by a few families. Judges are easily bought. Congressman are easily bought. The media is controlled by these same families. Zelaya was a treat to all of this. That is the root of the problem.

[laminator]

Gee, that sounds like the USA!! We're going to be going through something like this in, what, maybe 10-15 years?

[SayWhatYouWill]

I understand the gist of your comment, but we are talking wealth contrast on a whole other level.

Obama is in a very difficult position because he will undoubtedly have to support Zelaya otherwise he is supporting military coups and abuse of the rule of law. On the other hand, the Republicans and right-wingers around the world will be able to link him with Chavez because they will share the same position in supporting Zelaya's return to Honduras.

[Purobi]

You have no idea what you are talking about. How many Latin American countries or SE Asian countries have you visited for a prolonged period of time? Not as a tourist but as a traveler at least?

[PR one]

We don't have to wait that long, Can 76% of American get what they want, government health insurance?

[rssrai]

The repugs support democracy only when the person elected is a rightwing dictator.

[wallybloom]

It seems that things were done legally in Honduras. The president was demanding something that was not legal to their constitution. He tried to strong-arm the military in joining his un-democratic moves. Their congress AND supreme court both ruled against him. It matters not if you like or dislike this man. Rule of law was followed. I certainly don't see any reason for the U.S. to get involved in their internal disagreements. While I generally support the democratically elected presidents Chavez, Morales, Correa, and Ortega, I was not happy with Chavez strong-arming his opposition to change their constitution so he could continue being president. Without a clear limit to length of office, any elected person can lose their common sense and justify staying in power. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

[WorkingClass]

You think a military coup is legal? The legal remedy is impeachment.

[ManwithaParachute]

In our system....­not theirs.

[marshhen]

The is no such thing as impreachment in Hondoran constitution. What do you do?

[Perla]

He had called for a REFERENDUM, an opportunity for the people to weigh in about possible constitutional changes. You see holding a referendum as anti-democratic but a coup is not?
Interesting.

[PR one]

Bloomberg didn't go to the people, he went to the city council.

[IndepBob]

Wrong, Wally. You're buying into the corporate spin on this. Zelaya was legally justified to call for a "consultative referendum"; and as he noted last week, it wouldn't extend his time in office. Rather, it would express public opinion on whether he should be allowed to run again after an intervening term.

Keep in mind the constitution was forced upon the country by Reagan in 1982.

[brian662]

If they like the action then they try and talk. If they do not like the action they invade. Obama could have stopped thast invasion in a heartbeat. I'm glad that Venezuela and Bolivia are around to counter the Obama crap.

This sort of stuff does not happen in Central America without at least the WInk and Nod of the US government. It is US money that financed the oppostion to the government in this case through the use of money and tactical support from the US$ 50 million given annually for "democracy promotion" programs.

[dennisrs]

hey brian662 - change that to brian666

[dennisrs]

What "Invasion" brian 666?

[brian662]

As with these things the devil in the details. A little education after watching Glen Beck might be suggested.