A coup d'état is usually, at the very least, an unpleasant usurping of a legitimate government. The erosion and dismissal of a constitutional government, however, is worse.  This is exactly what ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was attempting to do in conjunction with Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, Raul & Fidel Castro of Cuba and Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua. 

Honduras is approximately the size of the state of Connecticut with a population of nearly 7 ½ million people.  A constitutional republic with three branches of government - Executive, Legislative and a Supreme Court - the constitution limits the president to one four (4) year term in office.  Honduras has had a stable constitutional government for nearly 30 years.  Before that, military juntas would periodically overthrow one another.  In the last 30 years, however, Honduras has been a key ally in the region for the United States.  During the Reagan Administration, Honduras was pivotal in support of the freedom-fighting Contras in their fight against the Soviet-backed Sandinista regime.  Some have even referred to the country as an “unsinkable aircraft carrier” for the U.S. 

So, who is Manuel Zelaya and what transpired last week that lead to his ouster? Elected in 2005, Mr. Zelaya, a wealthy landowner, comes from the timber and cattle industries of Honduras.  Active in the Liberal Party of Honduras since the 1980s, his alliance with the leftist Hugo Chavez drew sharp criticism from the more conservative opposition party.  In 2007, his second year in office, Zelaya ordered the country’s radio and television stations to run government propaganda for two hours each day.  Zelaya defended this move by stating, "We find ourselves obligated to make this decision to counteract the misinformation of the news media about our 17 months in office."  Later that same year, Zelaya became the first sitting President of Honduras to visit the Communist state of Cuba in 46 years.  Early this year, Zelaya led the battle cry to allow Cuba’s possible return, after a 47 year ban, to the membership of the Organization of American States. 

No one questions Zelaya’s desire to change the constitution.  The only apparent change he sought , however, would allow him to have more time as the head of the government.  Regardless of his aspiration, the ability to change the law of the land does not rest with him as president.  As Mary Anastasia O’Grady points out in The Wall Street Journal (June 30, 2009), “A constituent assembly can only be called through a national referendum approved by its Congress.”  Zelaya ignored that bit of the law and imported ballots from Venezuela and his dear friend Hugo Chavez.  You will recall that Chavez has “reformed” Venezuela’s constitution, ending presidential term-limits and giving him broad and nearly unlimited power over the nation.  It appears that Zelaya was a poor student of Chavez.

The Supreme Court of Honduras deemed Zelaya’s actions unconstitutional and the Congress and country’s Attorney General agreed.  Zelaya’s hubris raised its dirty head once more when he ordered his military chief to immediately distribute the Venezuelan-produced ballots for the referendum.  In a legitimate Honduran election, the military is tasked with the security and distribution of ballots and the military chief, citing the Supreme Court’s ruling that the referendum was unconstitutional, respectfully declined the order.   General Romeo Vasquez Velasquez was immediately fired by Zelaya.  Acting as the constitutional check and balance, the Supreme Court ruled that General Velasquez could not be terminated.  Zelaya then took it upon himself, with the aid of leftist loyalists, to break into the military base where the ballots were housed in order to distribute them for Sunday’s unconstitutional referendum.  That was the tipping point for the other two branches of government.

On Friday, June 26, 2009, a detention order, signed by a Supreme Court Judge, was issued for President Zelaya.  The legal document accused him of treason and abuse of authority.  Early Sunday morning, June 28, 2009, the military carried out the order swiftly and without casualties.  He was taken from his home to a Honduran air base and transported to Costa Rica.  The military would later defend their reasoning to remove him out of the country to prevent violence and to avoid any lingering tensions.

We now have President Obama and his Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, calling the legal actions of a foreign government “…not legal…” and to “…respect democratic norms (and) the rule of law”.  How ironic that the President of the United States is siding with someone who was doing just the opposite!  In protest, our Administration has ceased all joint military operations.

Manuel  Zelaya has now come to the United States and spoken to the United Nations General Assembly pleading his case as the victim.  Calling the actions of the Honduran government illegal he stated, “I’m going to try to open a dialogue and put things in order.”     Whose order, Mr. President?  Your order?  Hugo Chavez’s order?  Or will it be the rule of law that keeps order in Honduras?

Currently in Honduras, there are large rallies for democracy and in support of the new interim President.  People are back to work and the economy is running as smoothly as the impoverished nation can.  Yet, led by the Obama Administration, nations around the world have turned their backs on Honduras.  The World Bank has stopped funding and Hugo Chavez has threatened to invade Honduras with the Venezuelan military to re-install Zelaya as head of the government. 

Honduras has yearned for a stable government and they have had one for the past 30 years.  Communism has surrounded Honduras, but the people have strived to remain free from the heavy hand of totalitarian rule.  Honduras stood with the United States long before it was an ally against Communist attempts to invade Latin America in the 80s.  The U.S. military trained Honduran troops during World War II.  The brothers of the Greatest Generations were ready to go and fight for freedom, side-by-side with our troops, in a far off land against the tyranny of Hitler.  This fact is dear to this author’s heart, as my father was one of those trained and ready to defend freedom. 

As our U.S. Constitution works, so does the Constitution of Honduras.  We must not abandon our friends in Central America.  We have to stand firm with their resolve to maintain peace and liberty as outside forces attempt to stifle the people of Honduras.