I Guess Some Folks Ain't Feeling Democracy Like Dat

The New York Times is reporting that an coup attempt was put down over in that thriving democracy of Iraq. Evidently there are still some Saddam folk over there who aren't really feeling Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Let me say right off the bat that I don't subscribe to Foreign Policy magazine nor am I in any way a foreign policy wonk, but I for damn sure recognize that any plans we have for Iraq better factor in what might happen if the next time a coup is attempted it is actually successful. Ill give you the highlights.

BAGHDAD — Up to 35 officials in the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior ranking as high as general have been arrested over the past three days with some of them accused of quietly working to reconstitute Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party, according to senior security officials in Baghdad.

The arrests, confirmed by officials from the Ministries of the Interior and National Security as well as the prime minister’s office, included four generals. The officials also said that the arrests had come at the hand of an elite counterterrorism force that reports directly to the office of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.

snip

But the arrests reflect a new set of political challenges for Iraq. Mr. Maliki, who has gained popularity as a strong leader but has few reliable political allies, has scrambled to protect himself from domestic rivals as the domineering influence of the United States, his leading backer, begins to fade.

snip

But senior security officials said there was significant evidence tying those arrested to a wide array of political corruption charges, including affiliation with Al Awda, or the Return, a descendant of the Baath Party, which ruled the country as a dictatorship for 35 years, mostly under Mr. Hussein. Tens of thousands of Iraqis died or were persecuted, including Mr. Maliki, a Shiite Muslim, by the Baath Party. It was outlawed after the American invasion in 2003.

Like I said I don't know everything about foreign policy but I do know that having four generals be a part of the alledged coup is definitely not a good look. I think the situation with Hamas gaining elected office in Palestine should have taught us about being careful in pushing democracy abroad, but evidently we didn't learn. After we leave, and I hope it's sooner rather than later, it is highly likely that there are going to be issues with who gets elected and we need to be ready for that.