A lot of people are wondering why the Obama administration is punishing a small country like Honduras for following its constitution. The United States has condemned Honduras, rescinded aid to the country and cut off a number of visas sought by Hondurans desiring to visit the United States. The question is – why? The American Policy Institute expressed the frustration well, here:
Following the removal of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya from office, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was quick to condemn the move, saying it could create a “terrible precedent.”
What terrible precedent did she think might be established? A Latin American country actually following its constitution?
Despite what you may have heard from Secretary Clinton or read in the press, there was no coup d’etat in Honduras. Manuel Zelaya, a Hugo Chavez wannabe, was legally removed from office for violating his country’s constitution to extend his power.
Read the entire article if you’re unfamiliar with the story, or need a reminder. And keep in mind, the ouster of renegade Chavez acolyte, Zelaya, took place shortly after the fraudulent reelection of Ahmadinejad in Iran inspired a popular uprising in which untold numbers of protesters were beaten, killed and imprisoned. Obama chose not to “meddle” by making any statements in support of the protesters. Yet the Obama administration didn’t hesitate to “meddle” in the affairs of pro-American, and pro-Democratic Honduras, in essence, taking the side of the region’s bad guys, most notably, Chavez, Ortega, and Castro.
Last Friday, Obama’s State Dept announced that if Zelaya, isn’t returned to power in Honduras, the United States won’t recognize the results of that country’s upcoming free elections.
Again, why?
Honduras’ Foreign Minister Enrique Ortez has charged that as President, Zelaya was involved with drug trafficking from Venezuela into the U.S.:
“Every night, three or four Venezuelan-registered planes land without the permission of appropriate authorities and bring thousands of pounds…and packages of money that are the fruit of drug trafficking,” he said. “We have proof of all of this. Neighboring governments have it. The DEA [U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration] has it,” he added.
Enter George Soros, a man some consider to be the “biggest political fat cat of all time”, and who also happens to be the world’s richest and most influential supporter of drug legalization:
At a U.N. meeting on October 13, 2008, Zelaya had openly called for the legalization of drugs — supposedly to reduce violence — just weeks after the George Soros-funded Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy had met to discuss how to pursue such a course of action. The group subsequently released a report calling for a “paradigm shift” on how to handle the illegal drug problem. Billionaire Soros, a long-time funder of campaigns to legalize dangerous drugs, has purchased the services of several former Latin American government officials to push this cause.
Zelaya’s comments were immediately denounced by U.N. Office of Drug Control regional representative José Manuel Martinez Morales, who said such an approach was to “stick our heads under the sand like ostriches and accept the drug trade which is annihilating our youth.”
Last November Zelaya appeared with Soros at a U.N. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean conference in the Dominican Republic.
What is behind Soros’ s obsession with drug legalization? This revealing Accuracy In Media report from 2004 offers some clues:
The Hidden Soros Agenda: Drugs, Money, the Media, and Political Power
Despite his vision of an “open society,” he operates an unregulated “hedge fund,” open only to the super-rich, and is currently fighting a proposal from the Bush-appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission to regulate and monitor these offshore entities. House Speaker Dennis Hastert said on national television that no one really knows where the Soros money comes from.
Soros reportedly purchased a major stake in one of Colombia’s biggest banks, at a time when the Drug Enforcement Administration, in its study, “Colombian Economic Reform: The Impact on Drug Money Laundering within the Colombian Economy,” was documenting how major drug kingpins were taking advantage of the liberalization of the economy to put illicit drug revenue into legitimate businesses. The report stated: “U.S. and Colombian Government authorities have evidence of drug proceeds being deposited in every major bank in Colombia… A Colombian source indicated that many banks and businesses are owned covertly by principal members of the Cali cartel.”
Soros has categorically denied receiving money from drug cartels or any form of criminal activity. The fact remains, however, that at least some of his financial operations have been based offshore, in banking and financial centers that are widely reported to be considered conducive to money-laundering. The Soros fund is based in the Netherlands Antilles, a self-governing federation of five Caribbean islands. A CIA factbook describes the region as “a transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center.”
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Soros’ long-time goal has been to subvert the national anti-drug policy of the U.S. Government, to move away from the use of national and global law enforcement resources against the drug trade.
Soros had his eye on Obama back when he was running for the Senate:
Soros has also contributed to Barack Obama, running for the Senate as a Democrat from Illinois. CNSNews.com reports that, “Not only did Soros donate to Obama’s campaign, but four other family members – Jennifer, sons Jonathan and Robert and wife Susan – did as well. Because of a special provision campaign finance laws, the Soroses were able to give a collective $60,000 to Obama during his primary challenge.”
Honduras’s interim President Micheletti has denounced both Chavez’s attempt to turn his country into a satellite of Venezuela and has angrily and publicly noted the drugs flowing through his country from Venezuela with Zelaya’s help. The Honduran government has said that Zelaya’s reinstatement in non-negotiable. They will not have him back under any circumstances. By not bending to the will of the leftists in the region, and the Obama State Dept, Honduras has thrown a huge monkey wrench into the plan to continue funneling drugs from Venezuela through Honduras into the US, and that doesn’t further George Soros’s goal of drug legalization.
Hat tip: Jackstraw
Nice Deb 