As if to remind everyone that Egypt's military is still in charge, President Mohammed Morsi was sworn into office on Saturday before the Supreme Constitutional Court in Cairo, not before Egypt's dissolved parliament. The question is, how long will the military stay in charge? Morsi, the Egyptian republic's fifth president, and most importantly, its first Islamist president, is fully cognizant of the Muslim Brotherhood's power since the Tahrir revolution, and how it can now serve as a counterbalance against the Egyptian army. Shortly after assuming office, Morsi gave a speech at the University of Cairo, the same exact place where U.S. President Barack Obama delivered his famous "new beginning" speech, on June 4, 2009, a speech that stressed the importance of democracy. Three years later, Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood assumes power. How odd that Morsi forgot to thank Obama. Obama's speech not only championed democracy but the Palestinian cause as well. At the time, Obama said that the Palestinian people's lack of a state was "unacceptable." But don't worry, Morsi promised on Saturday to resolve this issue, declaring that the Egyptian people and their institutions will fight for the Palestinians until they get their full rights. Morsi has a different set of priorities than former President Mubarak. The new president pledged in his speech not to "export the revolution out of Egypt, and to respect all international agreements." Yet he also expressed support for the Syrian people in opposition to Bashar al-Assad's regime. He made no specific mention of Israel or the peace treaty with it. For Morsi, the peace treaty is nothing more than a means to an end. Morsi and the military will have to work hard to continue receiving U.S. aid as well as to feed 85 million hungry mouths. To succeed, Morsi will have to work side by side with the military until one knocks out the other. History will remember Cairo speeches I and II. Still, it's not clear that the democracy that Morsi spoke about on Saturday is what Obama had in mind.
