Posted on 09/28/2009 2:32:40 PM PDT by La Lydia
The Law Library of the Congress of the United States has issued an opinion on the removal of Manuel Zelaya as president of Honduras. The conclusion: Zelaya’s removal was legal but his deportation from the country was not. Here is the summary:
The Supreme Court of Honduras has constitutional and statutory authority to hear cases against the President of the Republic and many other high officers of the State, to adjudicate and enforce judgments, and to request the assistance of the public forces to enforce its rulings. The Constitution no longer authorizes impeachment, but gives Congress the power to disapprove of the conduct of the President, to conduct special investigations on issues of national interest, and to interpret the Constitution. In the case against President Zelaya, the National Congress interpreted the power to disapprove of the conduct of the President to encompass the power to remove him from office, based on the results of a special, extensive investigation. The Constitution prohibits the expatriation of Honduran citizens.
My thoughts: The...opinion may be inconvenient to Zelaya supporters, but it is based on facts. For the Obama administration to insist otherwise is inexplicable. Zelaya, a corrupt and feckless autocrat who was allied with...self-professed enemies of the United States, was lawfully removed from office by a unanimous decision of the Honduran supreme court. The U.S. had nothing to do with (it) and it should do nothing to force his return. Rather, we should rejoice that one of the self-proclaimed “21st-century socialist” allies of Chávez has been legally deposed by his own countrymen. We should not collaborate with some of the most anti-American governments in the region... to thwart the Honduran constitution and force the restoration of a would-be dictator....
(Excerpt) Read more at corner.nationalreview.com ...
FYI
Link to the Library of Congress report.
http://media.sfexaminer.com/documents/2009-002965HNRPT.pdf
Removing him from office was legal. Exiling him probably was not. He ought to have had his day in court.
He can still have it. All he has to do is step outside the embassy. Its easy. Open the door. Walk outside.
Yes, I have thought about the idea that they may have done better by putting him in jail and delaying his trial until after the election. Not that being in jail would be much different from where he is today. But jail would have had a “heavy-heavy-hangs-over-your-head” effect.
And he is in opposition to Obama, Hence, he is a racist.
U.S. blasts ousted Honduran (Zelaya) for "foolish" return
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2350140/posts
ping
Civil war will result in anarchy and anarchy will result in a leftist rule imposed on the otherwise freedom loving Hondurans. So much for democracy (representative republic) in Central America, at least as far as Honduras is concerned.
Certainly anyone with a heart for liberty and rule of law wants peace and stability, but the ouster of a up and coming dictator was, is and will always be legitimate under Honduran law and constitutional process; certainly the Honduran interim government should have arrested and jailed Zeyala prior to giving him a fair trail in front of a jury of peers rather than tossing him to like-minded leftist poseurs.
I said as much back in July.
The sad thing is many of our elected officials are condemning every aspect of the removal of Zeyala-up to and including categorizing the events as a “military coup”. Very few have condemned the actions of Zeyala....
God Bless freedom loving peoples everywhere!
But its a mistake easily rectified, by him. If he wants his day in court he can have it.
But I don't think thats what he wants; he's going the route of allying yourself with a foreign power.
They should force the closure of the embassy and the departure of the embassy staff. He can either go with them or surrender.
The left thinks if you are Cuban, white, and a conservative then you also would be a racist. Come on, get with the program here. :-) LOL
This is the post-racial era. Everyone is equal now. No matter what your skin color is if you oppose 0bama in any way you are a racist.
Sorry. (shrug) I forgot.
It’s easy to do. You were applying reason to the situation. Reason is anti-0bama and therefore racist. Stop trying to find a rational basis to 0bama’s policies or you will be sent to a camp and cured of your racism.
Of course hs deporation was not. However, Honduras probably felt it was better for all if he were expelled instead of staying and fomenting a street revolution.
They'd deal with the legalities of it later, but at least they kept the peace.
-PJ
At the time it all was happening, I was under the impression that their options were 1) send him out of the country or 2) an unfortunate household accident in which he perished. I think they thought, at the time, those were their options, too. All that said, I think they were exceeding clever to avoid having his blood on their hands. I also believe that Micheletti and his allies in the government are principled, decent, law abiding Hondurans who respect and appreciate the precarious Rule of Law in their country. They have had to make some difficult decisions in the face of intimidation and opposition. That so few — if any — have died in all this is a testimony to their political skill as well as their decency. They have kept their heads while all around them were losing theirs, including OUR State Department.
;^)
ping
Freepmail me to be added to / removed from Honduras ping list. Please ping me to threads of interest.
Maybe he can't be a racist by virtue of being Cuban, but let us agree that he should have the right to be a racist, even if he can't be. Inclusiveness is very important in the new orthodoxy!
Well spoken. I agree right down the line.
” Of course hs deporation was not. However, Honduras probably felt it was better for all if he were expelled instead of staying and fomenting a street revolution.
They’d deal with the legalities of it later, but at least they kept the peace.”
This must be exactly what happened. The Honduran government was trying to avoid the bloodshed of innocent Hondurans.
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