Egypt's First Islamist President (Mursi) Sworn In

[Hissyspit]

Source: Reuters

Egypt's first Islamist president sworn in

CAIRO | Sat Jun 30, 2012 7:04am EDT

(Reuters) - Egypt's first Islamist president, Mohamed Mursi, took his oath of office on Saturday, ending six decades of rule by former military men although the generals in charge since Hosni Mubarak was ousted last year have already curbed his powers.

Mursi was sworn in before the Supreme Constitutional Court, rather than parliament as is usual. The Islamist-led lower house was dissolved by the same court shortly before this month's run-off presidential election.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/30/us-egypt-politics-idUSBRE85S0JP20120630

[EFerrari]

1. Watching this on Twitter is hilarious.

Mainstream reporter: The crowd breaks out in chants, "the army and the people are one fist".

Indy academic / commentator: Unbelievable, the speech emcee started the chant "the army and the people are one fist".

Revolutionary: Loooooool -- some people are chanting "the army and the people are one fist".

[MADem]

2. This is a different "swearing in" than the one he did yesterday....

He's got about as much clout as Amadinejad. Instead of the ulema calling the shots, the Army is. This guy is more of a "moral guide," a cheerleader, a go-between between the people and the guys actually calling the shots, and a 'rep' for a substantial portion of the population that has been politically underserved to this point in time.

The Brotherhood reluctantly accepted the venue, but in a symbolic riposte, Mursi read his oath on Friday to crowds in Cairo's protest hub, Tahrir Square. He told supporters there that the people were the only source of power, in a dig at the generals who see themselves as the state's ultimate arbiters.

...An army decree on June 17 clipped presidential powers, denying the head of state his role as supreme commander of the armed forces with the right to decide on war and peace. It also gave SCAF legislative powers until a new parliament is elected, as well as veto rights over the writing of a new constitution.

Nevertheless, SCAF insists it has now kept a promise, made the day Mubarak fell, to transfer power to an elected president.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/30/us-egypt-politics-idUSBRE85S0JP20120630

We'll see if this is how it stays, or if this guy will be able to wrest power from the generals.