Leahy threatens to cut Egypt aid until Mubarak out

[cali]

Amid reports that the Obama administration is negotiating behind the scenes for a swift departure of Hosni Mubarak, a top Senate appropriator is warning he will cut off U.S. aid to Egypt until Mubarak steps down.

"I am just stating the facts: Nobody is going to vote for foreign aid for Egypt ... so long as this is going on," Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), chairman of the Senate Appropriations State/foreign ops subcommittee told POLITICO Friday.

<snip>

The threat could add leverage to the Obama administration's pressure on Mubarak to depart swiftly -- a key demand that several opposition groups insist on before they will enter talks with Egyptian officials on arrangements for a transition authority that can prepare for elections.

"Senator Leahy's threat is a significant development," said Eric Witte, of the Democratization Policy Council, noting that a decade ago Leahy used the same leverage to withhold U.S. assistance for Serbia until Slobodan Milosevic was arrested and sent for trial in the Hague. "Even with strong resistance from the State Department and administration at the time, he was able to use his position on the Appropriations Committee to enforce a policy of principled aid conditionality. It's worth noting too that the policy worked."

<snip>

http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/0211/Leahy_threatens_to_cut_US_aid_to_Egypt_until_Mubarak_out.html?showall

[RKP5637]

1. Good! n/t

[louis-t]

2. I'm still trying to understand who will replace him until

election time. I know there are thousands of opportunists waiting in the wings.

[Jefferson23]

3. Good for Leahy, I believe the Pentagon and others feel quite differently. n/t

[Uncle Joe]

4. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, cali.

[kenny blankenship]

5. you mean...CONSEQUENCES? You mean we might exert our... LEVERAGE?

We could ACT to defend the 84 million Egyptian people being victimized by a dictatorship and help them escape this cycle of degradation - just by turning off the spigot of money and arms to the thugs ruling over them, and refusing to turn it on again, until there has been a fundamental change in the government?

We don't HAVE TO confine ourselves to mealy mouthed speeches about how it's nice if rulers listen to the voice of the people, occasionally at least, in between orgies and parades given in their honor? You mean we can actually DO something?

Why didn't somebody think of this before?

[Submariner]

6. Hosni boy has $40 billion socked away, what the hell are we giving him anything for?

of course it should be stopped. Should have stopped long ago.

[kenny blankenship]

7. The guy is so fucking rich he can't be bribed to do anything

I had a good laugh at a report I saw earlier today that said the US was dangling 20 million dollars in front of Mubarak as incentive to leave. He might fix a parking ticket for that, but he ain't gonna leave office for such chump change. They must have been trying to insult him or something.

The aid money can be used as leverage on the Egyptian military - they need the money and they need to be able to buy parts from us for their tanks etc. which are US made and need a lot of regular maintenance. That's the leverage we have and can use - military $$ aid AND the availability of arms, ammo and parts. We use it on the Generals to persuade Mubarak that he needs to leave office ASAP, with however many billions he's already managed to steal from the Treasury, and just call it a day. 40 billion US socked away in banks and assets outside Egypt - not bad at all. No wonder Silvio Berlusconi has expressed such admiration for him, while everyone else in Europe is denouncing Mubarak's thuggery and calling on him to step aside without delays.