The Rule of Law, or the Rule of Man?

One of the recent events that best shows the disingenuousness of the left is the recent “coup” in Honduras.  To look at this, an exploration of the facts is necessary.  First off, a definition of coup.

A brilliantly executed stratagem; a triumph.

1. A coup d’état.
2. b. A sudden appropriation of leadership or power; a takeover: a boardroom coup.

Among certain Native American peoples, a feat of bravery performed in battle, especially the touching of an enemy’s body without causing injury.

[French, stroke, from Old French colp, from Late Latin colpus, from Latin colaphus, from Greek kolaphos.]

Next, let’s take a look at a time line of events in Honduras.

• Manuel Zelaya is the president of Honduras.  He belongs to the prominent left leaning party in that nation.  He was legitimately elected to his post.
• However, he wanted to emulate his friend and neighbor Hugo Chavez and be re-elected.  There is a problem with that plan:  The Honduran Constitution has has 378 articles.  Out of these, six are unchangeable.  One of these sets strict term-limits on the presidency.  After experiencing dictatorships in their past, the Hondurans setting term limits seems to be a wise precaution against tyranny.
• Zelaya decides that since he cannot serve further, and that the Legislative branch is Honduras has the sole authority to call for changes to the constitution, that he would hold his own referendum.
• The Supreme Court of Honduras informs the President that he cannot call a referendum, as it is not a power granted to him by the Honduran Constitution.
• Zelaya decided to defy the Supreme Court and do a “poll” instead.  The court see’s through this as a thinly veiled effort to defy the constitution.  The Congress, which is dominated by Zelaya’s OWN PARTY, sides with the court on this matter.
• The Attorney General of Honduras also suggests that such an action would be illegal.  He adds that anyone participating in such an “election” might be charged with a crime.  You see, Article 42, Section 5 says that anyone who is found to “incite, promote, or aid in the continuation or re-election of the President” would face loss of citizenship.. This, of course, is to prevent dictatorship.
• Zelaya also faces the fact that since the entire Government of Honduras is telling him that this is illegal, no one will print ballots for this election.  His solution is to turn to his friend and apparent mentor, Hugo Chavez.  Chavez, of course, is the communist leader that did get himself elected “dictator for life.”  Chavez has the ballots printed and prepares to ship them to Honduras.
• Zelaya then promptly faces another problem.  The Honduran Military conducts elections, and since the Supreme Court has decided that the election is illegal, they will not participate.  The Honduran military follows the Constitution, as confirmed by their Supreme Court.  Zelaya responds by firing the head of the military.
• The Supreme Court judges that the head of the military was fired without cause and re-instates him.
• The ballots arrive from Chavez.  The AG of Honduras has them confiscated as the Supreme Court, the congress, and everyone in the government down to the dogcatcher has decided that the election is unconstitutional and therefore illegal.
• Zelaya then decided to fill up some buses with his supporters and essentially raids the military base where the ballots are being held.
• The AG asks that the president be removed from office for committing treason.  After some deliberation, the Supreme Court and Congress agree.  The Military is ordered by the Supreme Court to arrest Zelaya.  The Military complies and sent him out of country to Costa Rica.
• The president of the Congress, Roberto Micheletti, is appointed as interim president.  His first action is to promise that the planned, and LEGAL, elections previously scheduled for late 2009 will be held.

My opinion on this is simple.  The Honduran Government, with the notable exception of its president, followed their Constitution and prevented its usurpation.

Secondly, the military of Honduras did not conduct a coup, as the ultimate authority in Honduras is NOT the president, but the Constitution!  If anything, it was the president himself that was attempting a coup, as his actions were in direct violation of the Constitution, and the other parts of the government were acting to enforce the law.  It was the president that wanted to achieve power that was expressly forbidden to him.  He demonstrated a willingness to violate Honduran law to achieve those ends.

For all of its precautions against tyranny, the Honduran Constitution does have one flaw.  It does not provide a process for removing a sitting president.  However, it does define the President’s actions as criminal, treasonous, and requires him to lose his citizenship.  In the end, this is a case of a leftist president over-reaching his authority (Sound familiar?).  The other divisions of the government followed the law, and ended this attempt to establish a dictatorship.

The story doesn’t end here though.  The international reaction to these events are far more interesting than the events themselves.  The following is a list of reactions compiled by Reuters.

Here is a timeline of events since the coup:

June 28, 2009 – Soldiers arrest President Manuel Zelaya in a pre-dawn raid on his home and expel him in his nightwear on a flight to Costa Rica.

The Honduran Congress names an interim president, Roberto Micheletti. The Supreme Court says it ordered the army to remove Zelaya.

The European Union condemns what it calls a “coup d’etat” against Zelaya.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, an ally of Zelaya, puts his troops on alert and says he will respond militarily if his ambassador to the Central American country is kidnapped or killed.

June 29 – U.S. President Barack Obama says the coup is illegal and will set a “terrible precedent” of transition by military force unless it is reversed.

At a meeting in the Nicaraguan capital Managua, leftist Latin American countries say they will withdraw their ambassadors from Honduras.

June 30 – The United Nations General Assembly calls on its member states to recognize only the Zelaya government and no other. Zelaya says he has vowed to return to Honduras.

July 1 – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says Zelaya’s overthrow sets a dangerous precedent and will not be accepted by the rest of Latin America.

July 5 – At least one pro-Zelaya protestor is killed and two wounded in clashes at Tegucigalpa’s airport as Honduran troops block an attempt by Zelaya to return home in a plane provided by Chavez. Zelaya lands in Managua instead.

The Organization of American States (OAS) meets in Washington and suspends Honduras after the interim authorities ignore an ultimatum to reinstate Zelaya.

Honduras’ interim government tells the OAS it wants to start talks.

July 6 – The United States condemns violence against protesters in Honduras and calls for Zelaya’s reinstatement.

July 7 – Both Micheletti and Zelaya accept Costa Rican President Oscar Arias as a mediator to try to solve the crisis.

July 8 – The U.S. government suspends $16.5 million in military assistance programs to Honduras. It added that a further $180 million in aid could also be at risk.

July 9 – Micheletti leaves Costa Rica after holding talks with Arias, the mediator, but he does not meet Zelaya face to face to discuss the crisis. Delegations from the two rival sides are left to continue the discussions.

July 10 – Arias announces that the two sides have agreed to continue talks.

Chavez says Zelaya is planning to return to Honduras “by water, air or land.

July 11 – Around 1,000 Hondurans march to Tegucigalpa airport to remember the clashes and victims from July 5, in a protest attended by Zelaya’s wife, Xiomara.

July 12 – Honduras’ interim government lifts the curfew.

Note the reactions to the violation of the Honduran Constitution by the their own President.  It seems that other governments, including our own, are completely misrepresenting these events.  Most seem to be characterizing this event as a military Coup, when in fact; the military followed the orders of the civilian government, who is still in control of the country.  Additionally, they seem to be ignoring the fact that it was the President that was attempting to violate the Constitution of Honduras and was arrested for the same.  They are also overlooking the obvious interference of Hugo Chavez in the affairs of a sovereign nation.  Most of these accusing governments seem to be left leaning, or outright socialist.  This is helpful because it allows us to see what leftists think of Constitutional authority, especially when that authority limits the government’s power.

I know that the obvious observation would be that this is simply a case of “leftists supporting other leftists,” but I think the issue is deeper than that.  It would be easy to dismiss this situation as such, but if we are to defeat the left, we need to take a deeper look at their motivations and methods.

The left wishes to create an top-down controlled economy.  They demonstrate, by their desire to manage health care, transportation, jobs, education, living conditions and locations, and private industry, the goal of controlling all human life.  After all, if they control all of these circumstances, they gain defacto control of you!.  If where you live, where you work, what you can think, what you can read, see, or listen to, what kind of car (if any) you can drive, where you can go to the doctor, and what your doctor can or can not do for you, are all determined by federal regulation, how much control of your own life do you have?

Constitutions that are based on individual freedoms and limit the power of government are an obstacle to their objectives.  Both of the last Democratic US presidents have lamented our “obsession with individual freedom,” or the fact the the US Constitution put limits on “what the government can do.”  For the American people to be “managed,” these freedoms and controls must be peeled back or eliminated.  I find it to be no surprise when the left in this country ignores the Honduran Constitution, after all, they have nothing but contempt for our own.

H/T: Atlas Shrugs