ElBaradei gets behind new Egypt party

al-Reuters ^ | Sat Apr 28, 2012 10:35am EDT | (Additional reporting by Ali Abdelati; Writing by Tom Perry Editing by Maria Golovnina)

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Mohamed ElBaradei and other prominent Egyptians on Saturday launched a party which he said would one day govern the country, offering a new choice to voters seeking alternatives to Islamist parties that now dominate parliament.

Though ElBaradei pulled out of the race for Egyptian presidency in January, his role in the new Dustour Party shows the Nobel Peace Prize winner and political liberal still aims to play a leading role in the future of the country of 80 million. …

ElBaradei has been a prominent figure in the Egyptian reform movement since he returned to Egypt in 2010 and challenged Mubarak's rule by calling for political reform. He has been consistently critical of the army council ruling Egypt since Mubarak was toppled by mass protests in February, 2011.

His supporters viewed him as the man to replace Mubarak as president but he was criticized for failing to build grass-roots support. His withdrawal from the presidential race was seen in large part as an admission that he could not win.

ElBaradei justified the decision by saying he could not take part in an election unless it was held within a real democratic system. …

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What a bunch of hot air. The MB and the other radicals are in, and they're in to stay unless forced out with great violence. Besides, ElBaradei's anything but a "liberal"; he's now playing a role similar to that of Abbas next to Hamas (both the same).

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A political party set up by Mohamed ElBaradei impresses me as being like a political party set up by Zbigniew Brzezinski or Henry Kissinger in the US. Just “no”.