Muslim Brotherhood - victory for democracy?
Muslim Brotherhood - victory for democracy?Reuters

The Obama administration “nurtures” Arab Spring rebellions, which have been promoted as democratic but so far have yielded anarchy, according to U.S. deputy national security advisor Denis McDonough.

He said the American administration views the rebellions in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen as positive for democracy, arguing that “a more democratic region will ultimately be more stable for us and our friends." McDonough estimated that a similar rebellion in Iran will be to the advantage of the United States.

The American experiment with direct involvement in promoting democracy in the Palestinian Authority resulted in a shock for then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice when the Hamas terrorist organization won the first, and until now the only, PA legislative elections. Hamas’ strong base in Gaza gave it the catalyst to oust the rival Fatah faction, headed by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, from Gaza two years after the elections.

The Obama administration also openly backed the ouster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak last year and now is faced with a democratically elected Muslim Brotherhood, which fathered Hamas.

Since the Brotherhood’s victory and its attempt to win the presidency, the movement has been openly anti-American and anti-Israel, imprisoning Americans and threatening to change if not cancel the 1979 peace agreement with Israel.

McDonough argued that the Obama administration’s “engagement” of the Muslim Brotherhood will promote transparency. “Even if someone wants to be dictatorial, it’s going to be difficult,” he told the Washington Institute for Near East Policy conference.

In Libya and Yemen are suffering from anarchy in some parts of their countries following the Arab Spring rebellions that ousted their dictators.

In Syria, the Obama administration only belatedly supported the rebellion against a brutal suppression by Syrian President Bashar Assad. President Obama initially backed the regime, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling him a “reformer” until doing an about-face in the wake of a growing number of civilians gunned down by Assad’s army and secret police.