Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?

Posted on | July 3, 2013 | 72 Comments

Anyone who knows the Central Intelligence Agency’s history in orchestrating the overthrow of governments must be wondering whether the agency played a role in the collapse of the Morsi regime.

My hunch? Certainly they did, and we should be glad for it. Morsi’s government was a dangerous proto-fascist Islamic thugocracy.

Think about this: President Obama, John Kerry and other top administration officials have spent the past two years watching the “Arab Spring” turn into a bloody and disastrous failure. The Morsi government was unpopular and unstable, and it might have given way to a totalitarian Islamic dictatorship or the kind of chaotic “failed state” anarchy that could turn Egypt into a base for al-Qaeda.

Would that be good for Democrats in the 2014 elections? In 2016?

No, the endless mess in Syria is bad enough, and to have Egypt descend into a nightmare would have been added to Libya in the Republican indictment of Democrat foreign-policy failure.

So it is not difficult to imagine a series of meetings and phone calls in which top U.S. intelligence officials were told, in effect, see what we can do to influence events in Egypt in a “good” direction. Who can doubt that other intelligence agencies, probably the British and French, and of course the Israelis, were also working in the same direction?

Would CIA influence on events in Egypt involve anything illegal or particularly “spooky”? Probably not. It would most likely involve some basic communication and liaison work, to make sure that the generals taking over would be people we could work with, and to help them organize the takeover in an efficient manner.

The CIA used to do this kind of stuff all the time back during the Cold War, under both Democrat and Republican presidents, and the coup in Egypt appears to have been accomplished so quickly and with so little violence as to please any old-time Agency man.

If the secrets of CIA operations in Egypt the past few weeks were leaked to Glenn Greenwald, would he approve? No, of course not.

But f–k Glenn Greenwald. Way to go, CIA.

UPDATE: My conservative friends are skeptical of my theory that the New and Improved Nixon-Like Obama would be so cynical as to deploy the CIA to fix the Egyptian problem the way the Agency fixed the “Iran problem” in 1953 or the “Guatemala problem” in 1954. Ladd Ehlinger Jr. points out this very interesting article:

Army concern about the way President Mohamed Morsi was governing Egypt reached tipping point when the head of state attended a rally packed with hardline fellow Islamists calling for holy war in Syria, military sources have said.
At the June 15th rally, Sunni Muslim clerics used the word “infidels” to denounce both the Shias fighting to protect Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and the non-Islamists that oppose Mr Morsi at home.
Mr Morsi himself called for foreign intervention in Syria against Mr Assad, leading to a veiled rebuke from the army, which issued an apparently bland but sharp-edged statement the next day stressing that its only role was guarding Egypt’s borders.
“The armed forces were very alarmed by the Syrian conference at a time the state was going through a major political crisis,” said one officer, whose comments reflected remarks made privately by other army staff.

This is interesting, as I say, but does not preclude the possibility of CIA influence in Egyptian affairs. Besides which, I’ve staked out the Google bomb on this, so that when any conspiracy theorist or paranoid Islamic radical searches for “Egypt + coup + CIA,” that traffic’s coming straight to me, baby. Pragmatic? You betcha.

Category: Egypt

Comments

72 Responses to “Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?”

MrEvilMatt
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:36 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?: Anyone who knows the Central Intelligence Agency’s history in orchestra… http://t.co/Ne2gKVJo3w
Citzcom
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:36 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?: Anyone who knows the Central Intelligence Agency’s history in orchestra… http://t.co/K6Ev9hFke6
jwbrown1969
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:36 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?: Anyone who knows the Central Intelligence Agency’s history in orchestra… http://t.co/kW66Rpyxwa
Lockestep1776
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:36 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?: Anyone who knows the Central Intelligence Agency’s history in orchestra… http://t.co/5fIeErAXNB
rsmccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:42 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX I hope so, because fuck @ggreenwald
DaTechGuy on DaRadio
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:43 pm

I respectfully disagree as the Muslim Brotherhood is an ally of this president and this administration.
thatMrGguy
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:50 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/yIDuUhJ0th
Mike G.
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:53 pm

I have to agree with you. Obama is sorely disappointed in the ouster of Morsi.
Stacy McCain: Was the CIA involved in Morsi’s downfall? | The Daley Gator
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:54 pm

[…] Had not thought about that as of yet. I was actually wondering when Obama will take credit for this, and somehow blame Bush for Morsi ever assuming power in the first place. I mean MSNBS is already ignoring all the anti-Obama signs in the crowds in Egypt and giving him credit, but look for Obama to start spiking the football soon enough. But, to the CIA and whether or not they played some role. McCain makes the case pretty well […]
preciseBlogs
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:54 pm

Was the CIA Involved in #Egypt’s Coup http://t.co/XkUNEkCLTs #news #conservative
TPBGirl
July 3rd, 2013 @ 7:57 pm

RT @rsmccain: Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX I hope so, because fuck @ggreenwald
Richard McEnroe
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:00 pm

Two years? Damn. Them redneck teabaggers got Jeff Davis twice that and they’uns didn’t even have Obamaphones.
Richard McEnroe
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:04 pm

What REALLY has Obama seriously wigged is the generals siding with the people not the president …
joej2020usa
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:05 pm

Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/6pwQtrVUk2
Bob Belvedere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:06 pm

Perhaps it is a different faction of the Left behind this [if, indeed, the CIA is involved]. Let us not forget that the Obama-Axelrod-Jarrett group is one of several Leftisms at work here.

I take no position on this as of yet, but merely wanted to point out the many currents in the Leftist stream running through DC.
robertstacymccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:14 pm

Bob: This is a matter of political pragmatism. The scenario I describe would involve a very cynical calculation by Obama and his top advisers about what would be best for them. It so happens that in this instance, what’s best for Obama is actually a good thing and, rare as such occasions are, we should be happy with this outcome.
BobBelvedere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:17 pm

RT @rsmccain Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/vVC94gkpSm I hope so, because fuck @ggreenwald |
BobBelvedere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:18 pm

RT @rsmccain Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/vVC94gkpSm | I doubt it, but good speculation-well reasoned.
DaleyGator
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:18 pm

RT @BobBelvedere: RT @rsmccain Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/vVC94gkpSm I hope so, because fuck @ggreenwald |
Igor Shafarevich
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:19 pm

No question. Obama fomented the original Arab Spring mainly because he wanted a model for the “Occupy” domestic insurrection to overthrow the US Constitution.
rsmccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:19 pm

RT @BobBelvedere: RT @rsmccain Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/vVC94gkpSm | I doubt it, but good speculation-well reasone…
rsmccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:19 pm

@BobBelvedere Remember: This is the New, Nixon-Like Obama Era. http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX
AmPowerBlog
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:22 pm

RT @rsmccain: @BobBelvedere Remember: This is the New, Nixon-Like Obama Era. http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX
SPQR9
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:23 pm

Not a chance, it was successful.
SPQR9
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:25 pm

Can’t see it. Not consistent with the behavior of the Narcissist in Chief.
hollybmartin
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:25 pm

RT @BobBelvedere: RT @rsmccain Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup? http://t.co/vVC94gkpSm | I doubt it, but good speculation-well reasone…
Josh_Painter
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:28 pm

RT @rsmccain: @BobBelvedere Remember: This is the New, Nixon-Like Obama Era. http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX
Mike G.
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:29 pm

I can see that as a possibility. Maybe some of Obama’s “trusted” cabinet appointees are seeing the writing on the wall and decided to take matters into their own hands unbeknownst to Obama and his minions.
Dana
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:29 pm

My hunch is that they didn’t. The Director is too new, and the previous Director short tenured; the agency is in a bit of turmoil now, and secrets like that are susceptible to not being kept.

It would have taken a direct order from President Obama to get the CIA to take that action, and I can’t see him giving that order.
MrPaulRevere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:41 pm

I would suspect that the Saudis also were a player here. The King and Mubarak were ‘tight’ as they say and the King was furious at the way Mubarak was treated post-removal. Not that I am a fan of the Saudis or anything of that nature, but they see the value in a form of crude stability. As do I.
rsmccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:50 pm

Please see UPDATE http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX @FilmLadd @BobBelvedere
rsmccain
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:52 pm

Frankly, I’m disappointed by your lack of faith in “the New and Improved Nixon-Like Obama” http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX @FilmLadd @instapundit
FilmLadd
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:52 pm

Meh, individual agents could’ve rooted for it, but no way agency as a whole. MT @rsmccain: Please see UPDATE http://t.co/3JkeO85CZ7
CFLancop
July 3rd, 2013 @ 8:52 pm

RT @rsmccain: Frankly, I’m disappointed by your lack of faith in “the New and Improved Nixon-Like Obama” http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX @FilmLadd @…
LADowd
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:12 pm

“Was the CIA Involved in Egypt’s Coup?” http://t.co/aWoW57H7Ur by @rsmccain
Igor Shafarevich
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:27 pm

Precisely.

There’s plenty of precedent out there for it, though – Salvador Allende was an elected marxist, in Chile, who had to be deposed in a coup after he attempted to impose his marxist delusions to fundamentally transform the Chilean economy.
Igor Shafarevich
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:29 pm

As I understand it, the MB and the Egyptian military have been feuding factions since the 1950s or so.

The animosity goes way, way back and the military has always come out on top.

Obama supported the original Arab Spring, mainly because he wanted a model for the Occupy domestic insurrection to complete inevitable marxist revolution and transition from “capitalism” to “communism”.

We’re seriously under-estimating the nature of Hussein Obama’s delusions; the guy belongs in a padded room.
Ivanalaska
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:43 pm

RT @rsmccain: Frankly, I’m disappointed by your lack of faith in “the New and Improved Nixon-Like Obama” http://t.co/7EuQIlRuwX @FilmLadd @…
MrPaulRevere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:50 pm

That’s very insightful commentary and I have nothing to add to it. More, please…
Pablo
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:52 pm

Mr Morsi himself called for foreign intervention in Syria against Mr
Assad, leading to a veiled rebuke from the army, which issued an
apparently bland but sharp-edged statement the next day stressing that
its only role was guarding Egypt’s borders.

And then this happened: Syria government calls for Egypt’s Morsi to step down

Heh.
gastorgrab
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:56 pm

I think old Vladimir Putin might have helped things along in Egypt.

And why shouldn’t he? Reduce the US sphere of influence while he expands his own? Destabilize those who support the Syran rebels? Just the satisfaction of poking president Barack Obama in the eye one more time?

I’m not see any down sides really.
gastorgrab
July 3rd, 2013 @ 9:58 pm

If Obama has every person’s phone on the planet bugged, how do they keep getting caught off guard?

Could it be that sifting through such a massive pile of data in real time is next to impossible?
Evi L. Bloggerlady
July 3rd, 2013 @ 10:04 pm

Maybe the CIA did an end run on the President?
Evi L. Bloggerlady
July 3rd, 2013 @ 10:05 pm

Obama is a huge fan!
Adjoran
July 3rd, 2013 @ 10:19 pm

Sorry, but even if Obama were willing to harm an islamist regime, we can be fairly certain the CIA doesn’t have the sort of influence to get 20 million Egyptians – nearly a quarter of the population – into the streets. Typically they work somewhat more subtly.

Also, the Egyptian Army has been working very closely with the United States Army for decades, ever since the peace treaty that won them military aid. Their officer corps is quite friendly with ours and many who are senior officers now in both armies were first introduced as junior officers “back in the day.”

The CIA doesn’t have such a strong organization or favorable reputation in the Arab world, either. It seems far more likely the Egyptian Army acted with tacit approval from their American counterparts with whom they have long relationships than influence from the hated spooks (who, incidentally, have botched every single important piece of intelligence in the Middle East going back to the KGB influence on Mosadegh’s cabinet).

Alternatively, they might just have noticed the whole country in the street screaming for them to do something. But the CIA? It’s just idle and unsupported speculation (in start contrast to the enterprising and supported speculation I offered).
David R. Graham
July 3rd, 2013 @ 10:31 pm

I feel this assessment too much credits CIA and boss for cynical political calculation. God arranging matters here (Morsey at wits’ end), I doubt CIA, though I doubt not their machinations on the ground. CIA field operators are “cowboys,” dim wits, diversity/privilege mavens. Their intel analysts often have not beyond HS certification. They kill large and indiscriminately. Egyptians, civ and mil, would see them a mile off. MB and this USA regime, to include now the civ executive bureaucracy, are indistinguishable and the latter owes its position to the former. Never is what’s best for an evil personality a good thing. Well, unless, perhaps, it is to highlight their evil. But that’s playing God with the insights and dispositions. Unsafe posture. St. Paul rejects it (“shall we sin the more that grace may abound?”).
MrPaulRevere
July 3rd, 2013 @ 10:32 pm

“I think old Vladimir Putin might have helped things along in Egypt.” Any event that keeps oil prices high is good news for Putin…Events like these are riddles wrapped inside mysteries to paraphrase Churchill.
David R. Graham
July 3rd, 2013 @ 11:16 pm

“We’re seriously under-estimating the nature of Hussein Obama’s delusions; the guy belongs in a padded room.”

In a prison with the “spouse,” for life.
David R. Graham
July 3rd, 2013 @ 11:18 pm

“And why shouldn’t he? Reduce the US sphere of influence while he expands his own? Destabilize those who support the Syran rebels? Just the satisfaction of poking president Barack Obama in the eye one more time?”

Concur. The now-famous pictures of nicely pre-made signs directed at the thief suggest exactly that.
David R. Graham
July 3rd, 2013 @ 11:20 pm

Strong concur, all points.