Obama Knocks "Hypocrisy" of Honduras Critics

By: Anna Aulova
Topics: White House

(AP Photo/The Canadian Press)

President Obama hit back at critics who say the U.S. not doing enough for Honduras following a trilateral meeting with President Calderon of Mexico and Prime Minister Harper of Canada in Mexico today.

Mr. Obama said those complaining that America has not done enough following the military coup that resulted in the overthrow of the government of President Manuel Zelaya on June 28 "can't have it both ways."

"The same critics who say that the United States has not intervened enough in Honduras are the same people who say that we're always intervening and the Yankees need to get out of Latin America," said Mr. Obama.

The president said the U.S. has done everything it could, including condemning the coup and calling for an immediate reinstating of President Zelaya.

"If these critics think that it's appropriate for us to suddenly act in ways that in every other context they consider inappropriate, then I think what that indicates is that maybe there's some hypocrisy involved in their -- their approach to U.S.-Latin American relations," said Mr. Obama.

Canadian Prime Minster Stephen Harper supported the statements made by Mr. Obama, suggesting that "If I were an American, I would be really fed up with this kind of hypocrisy."

"You know, the United States is accused of meddling except when it's accused of not meddling," Harper said.

He went on to say that the latest criticism of the U.S. not doing enough in Honduras comes from the very same people who would condemn longstanding cooperation between Colombia and U.S. for "legitimate security and drug trafficking reasons."

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by Get_it_Right August 11, 2009 5:39 PM EDT: Obama is just plain Wrong: A Citizen?s View. He is guilty of meddling in
other countries affairs and being ?stupidly? uninformed.

It was interesting to see the reaction to Heads of State of the countries around the world when the
corrupt President, supported by illegal drugs from Hugo Chaves, was Legally removed from office
according to the Honduran Constitution. Again, the President of the United States has spoken with-
out understanding the facts as he has done quite frequently. President Obama has again stated that
the removal of Zelaya was illegal. Not quite so.

The President, Manuel Zelaya, was removed and replaced by the President of the congress in
accordance with the Honduran Constitution. President Obama might well be advised to read articles
42, 239, 244, 272, 278, 373, 374 of the Honduran Constitution.

Using his own words, he once again has acted ?STUPIDLY?, without knowing the facts. Not only was
the removal justified, but done in strict accord to the Honduran Constitution. Zelaya, in effect,
removed himself from office by his illegal, unconstitutional actions and lost his rights as a citizen,
and therefore lost his eligibility to be President.

?The rights of any citizen is lost if the citizen incites, promotes, or supports the continuance or re-
election of the president of the Republic.? Article 42. (Note: They have a one-term restriction as
constitutional law)

The obvious reason this is so upsetting to the Heads of State like President Obama is that he, too,
on examination of his statements and actions has, in my opinion, usurped his constitutional authority,
has violated his oath of office both as a U.S. Senator and as President to uphold and defend the
constitution, and has infringed on the Peoples and States rights guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution.

Heads of states of democracies will portray this as illegal because it could happen to them.

If we had a congress that represented the people rather that name calling and labeling the people
?un-American? we might be impeaching President Obama.

Our ?Bill of Rights? has been and is being trampled on. The limits of Constitutional authorities are being violated, and our Supreme Court and Congress are not fulfilling their obligation as a legitimate system of checks and balances. The rights of U.S. Citizens are under siege and the problem is that many or most congress members of both ideologies are guilty of violating their oath to support, preserve, and defend the Constitution of United States of America.

So it appears that Honduras is more of a ?republic? and a ?democracy? than the United States.; Reply to this comment


by definitecoup August 11, 2009 11:30 AM EDT: Stop wasting energies trying to convince yourself this was not a coup. More interesting is the comment of the Canadian PM "If I were an American, I would be really fed up with this kind of hypocrisy."

I thought Canada was in America. Is it in Africa, Asia or Europe? Tip: America is a continent not a country!; Reply to this comment


by honduras-now August 11, 2009 1:05 AM EDT: In Honduras for the first time is a social class dispute people are fed up with the rich getting richer and the poor getting more taxes.
They want to change all the corrupt politicians in power. They don't want communism. But they don't want to be exploited but what they think is the dishonest people with access too the money. But that way of life is in almost every Hondurian they think bribe is OK, not to work for what you are paid for is fine. The whole country need to renew their way of sense of community and work with all the natural richest they already have. Selfishness and envy are all over the towns. I came back from Honduras today people want to have better distribution of wealth thats all.; Reply to this comment

by hamiltongrad August 10, 2009 8:03 PM EDT

Even a casual understanding of this issues shows that it was NOT a COUP.
Briefly, the Honduran Constitution states that the President has one term. Just one. Not two. Not one and a half. Just one.
He wanted and plotted for two :
///// and had ballots illegally made up with backing of Chavez and mobs in the street, a la Chavez - to take over, illegally. where did this mob get funding ? and who helped ? just guess.
The Honduran Supreme Court, ordered the miliary to expell Zelaya from the country. Not only that.... Even all the members of his own party voted to expell this WOULD BE DICTATOR ! Not only that ...Even his vice president ( of his own party !) wanted the country to SIMPLY follow the constitution and protect his country.
It would be like ? George Bush ( or Bill Clinton, or Nixon ? AL Gore) decided that depite what our AMERICAN CONSTITUTION and despite the will of the elected representatives , and the Supreme Court, that he ( Nixon for example) was going to stay as long as he wanted to, and gathered men, mobs, arms to make it happen. Even got funding from ? South China, who knows.

What the heck would we do to protect the country ? HOLD A MEETING ? GO to the UN ?
Hellll no...
At the end of the day, President Obama and Sec State Clinton, have to decide if we want to continue our long tradition of supporting the rule of law, or do we now, - and is at odds with all we think we believe- that now we want to support a Hittalian -Chavez Clone LEFTIST to take over a decent democracy.

////////// And if that is so, we have to ask our President, why.

Reply to this comment


by mglesne August 11, 2009 3:00 PM EDT: I suggest you take more than a casual look at the facts because you are all wrong. Simply put, there is absolutely no evidence that Zelaya "wanted and plotted" changing term limits. He said he was NOT interested in this a million times, and the proposed (non-binding) poll he had planend said nothing about term limits. The idea was to see if people were interested in the idea of changing other parts of the Constitution (which was written under the military's thumb in the 80s). That ballots were only made in Venzuela because Zelaya was respecting the Court decision that no resources be used for the poll.

The bottom line is that even the Honduran military admits it was illegal to remove Zelaya from the country (in fact it is against the Constitution). The vote to subsequently remove him from from office was based on a clearly forged resignation letter. Another illegality. Zelaya was to be tried, but the coup plotters did not want this because they knew their charges were BS - just a pretext for a coup.

This Obama line about "hypocrisy" is such nonsense. People in Latin America want the US to support them and support democracy. This is not "intervention." Intervention is what the US did in the bad old days with coups, invasions, political meddling, economic strangulation, etc. Intervention against democracy is different that supporting it. There is PLENTY the US can and must do in Honduras because we hold all the cards there. Just upholding US law would be a good first step (the law says all aid and contact with coup government's must cease but, despite Obama's words, we have not officially labeled this a coup yet). Obama is fast losing the goodwill he came into office with in the region.


by TXN4EVER August 11, 2009 10:28 PM EDT: Okay, I am sorry storm and hamilton...you do not know what you are talking about.

I am VERY familiar with Honduras, its'people and its' political system and justice (non-existent) system.

I have been married to a Honduran for 16 years and have traveled there and live there, part-time, quite often.

You just know that Zelaya was having this secret election? Do you have facts? Thought so.

He is guilty of a some repugnant qualities: stupidity, no leadership skills and basically being a lousy president. The country is a disaster' that is not his fault. He needs to be tried and have his day in court...........oh, I forgot, that doesn't happen in Honduras. Instead, they, being the wealthy business owners (mostly Palestinian descent) who own about 97% of the country's wealth and business and never seemed to have a "trickle down" effect with globalization; just a cascading effect into their own wealth.. Do not get me wrong; I am a very conservative Republican registered US citizen; but you have not seen poverty and injustice until you have been to Honduras. Zelaya is guilty of being stupid by trying to play cool covorting with bipolar patient Chavez.

Zelaya needs to be placed back in power for the remainder of his term.
The country needs to have LEGAL elections with a LEGAL president in power; not a de facto one.

Oh and where is what they did to him considered legal removal?

Need proof and facts: el liberator.com (it is in spanish though; hopefully you can at least read en espanol).

Thanks............Sharon