I been robbed! whines Honduras ousted president Zelaya to Hillary Clinton

November 4, 5:06 PMOrlando Republican ExaminerBlas Padrino

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Apparently, things aren’t going Manuel Zelaya’s way in Honduras. The deposed president, holed up in the Brazilian embassy in the country’s capital of Tegucigalpa, thinks he’s being double-crossed by the Obama Administration. When he agreed last week to leave the matter of his reinstatement in the hands of Honduras’ National Congress he believed that there was an under-the-table pact to return him to office. At the time, he announced to the press that he expected to be back as president by this Thursday. Now he’s afraid that he’ll never restored.
On Monday, this writer reported that Thomas Shannon, the U.S. Undersecretary of State for Latin America had categorically denied the existence of any side agreements to pressure the National Congress to restore Zelaya. In effect, the United States is now locked into a position that requires recognition of the new president to be elected on November 29, whether or not Zelaya is allowed to complete his term by the Honduran Congress.
This is not sitting well with the ex-president. The Associated Press reports that today he fired off a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demanding clarification. He wants to know if the United States is no longer condemning the ‘coup’ against him. But, the AP report notes that Ambassador Shannon told the Spanish language version of CNN that the U.S. will recognize the November elections, regardless of Zelaya’s fate.

"Both leaders took a risk and put their trust in Congress but at the end of the day the accord requires that both leaders accept its decision," Shannon said.

Last week’s embrace between Ambassador Shannon and Manuel Zelaya at the Brazilian Embassy has taken the grotesque aspect of a scene from the movie The Godfather, with Mel Zelaya as the recipient of the mafia’s kiss of death.
Today, current President Roberto Micheletti was busy seeking nominations from all parties for his national unity cabinet, while the National Congress issued requests to the Supreme Court and the Attorney General for their opinions on the legality of Zelaya’s restoration. No deadlines for response were given. The Congress is in recess until after the elections and will not meet before then, unless a special session is called.
All recent developments point to an American retreat from its support for the mercurial ex-president. After finally realizing that its Latin American foreign policy was headed for yet another embarrassment, the Obama Administration has now thrown Mr. Zelaya under the bus. It’s too late, however, to wipe the egg off Obama’s face.

(Above right: Thomas Shannon embraces Manuel Zelaya at Brazil's Embassy. AP photo/Esteban Felix).
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