BBC Interview - 9 February 2011

 
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Comments

[Clifford Kiracofe]

Excellent and important interview at an influential world class venue. The correspondent I thought was fair and thoughtful in his questions and polite in tone.

[William R. Cumming]

WOW! An interesting interview with you PL by the BBC. So Mubarack lasts until the Presidential elections as figure head with OS as the facilitator to both democratization of some kind in an Egyptian consititutional sense and Mubarak's staying on. Clearly this would indicate the power of the street protests have dwindled probably for many reasons. If my analysis of the interview with you is correct, then perhaps my initial assessments were incorrect that the street protest could not be manipulated to allow Mubarack to retain his position. Time will tell.

[Clifford Kiracofe]

Some data on White House outside advisors, a rather "pro-Israel" lineup:

"The White House invited several Middle East scholars to discuss the Egypt upheaval Tuesday.

Among those who attended were the Center for Strategic and International Studies’s Jon Alterman, Dan Brumberg of the U.S. Institute of Peace, Fouad Ajami of Johns Hopkins University and the Wall Street Journal, former George W. Bush White House Middle East and democracy advisor Elliott Abrams, Human Rights Watch’s Tom Malinowski, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Michele Dunne, and Scott Carpenter, a former State Department Middle East democracy official now with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

The one and a half hour meeting, with the NSC’s Dan Shapiro, Samantha Power, and Ben Rhodes, was off the record."

"The NSC officials in the meeting Tuesday were very enthusiastic about Biden’s more forceful message to Suleiman, attendees said." http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/

[steve]

What a gadfly Biden is.

[Jackie]

Clifford,
Correct me if I'm mistaken, but wasn't Fouad Ajami a shill for the Iraqi debacle? Sorry, I just can't take him seriously.

P.S. I'm about half way through your book. New time constraints have a toll.

[Jake]

""The White House invited several Middle East scholars to discuss the Egypt upheaval Tuesday."

Scary....

[Jackie]

Pat,
I just heard you on "The World" on NPR. I didn't hear the intro, but recognized your voice.
Thanks,

[Tyler]

Not really the place for it, but I heard you on NPR today. You sound like you're in your 40's.

Loved how your use of the term "oriental despot" seemed to rock the hostess back on her heels, hah hah.

[Clifford Kiracofe]

Jackie,

Fouad Ajami is a Neocon ally so....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fouad_Ajami

Thank you for purchasing my book. I hope you find the second half helpful.

[Fred]

Clifford,

"former George W. Bush White House Middle East and democracy advisor Elliott Abrams,"

Same guy that helped Ollie sell arms to Iran to fund the Contras. Certainly a fine example of a defender of constitutional democracy.