Obama's hopes of a moderate Brotherhood dashed

It's official: Egypt's Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has deposed President Mohammed Morsi. Another revolution made it to the history books. July, with its high temperatures, has a tendency to produce revolutions and regime changes in the land of the Nile.

Sixty-one years ago to the month, Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser spearheaded the Free Officers' coup that ousted King Farouk and sent him into exile. In July 2012, Morsi appointed Hesham Kandil as prime minister. His government imploded within the year. Once again, in July.

The United States is celebrating 237 years of independence on Thursday. That the downfall of the Muslim Brotherhood took place on this day is charged with symbolism. U.S. President Barack Obama has actively contributed to the mirage of Egyptian democracy under the Muslim Brotherhood that has developed in the wake of his Cairo Address in 2009, after which he abandoned his ally, former President Hosni Mubarak.

Obama threw his support behind Morsi, dismissing reports that his election was rigged, because he believed the Muslim Brotherhood's voice was the voice of the Egyptian street.

Obama was convinced that there were moderates in the Muslim Brotherhood. He envisioned a Turkish-style democracy emerging in Egypt, only to discover that Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was constantly obstructing the American bandwagon's path.

Obama's phone call to Morsi reflects a sense of disappointment in Washington over the Muslim Brotherhood's conduct and their supposed promise of democracy. During the call, Obama hinted that Morsi, only a year into his first term as president, should start packing. Sissi's announcement late Wednesday night made that suggestion a reality, and Morsi is no longer in charge.

The Muslim Brotherhood's failure was inevitable; it had nothing meaningful to offer to the tens of millions of starved, unemployed Egyptians or those who, despite their academic backgrounds, are now aimlessly wandering the streets.

Morsi's departure dashed the romantic hope that there was someone inside the Muslim Brotherhood you could do business with.

For now though, the turmoil continues. Some form of military council will be in charge, but Israel should not shed a tear. Morsi alienated everyone, but because of the geo-political situation, he felt compelled to maintain Israeli-Egyptian cooperation on defense matters. This was evident in the coordinated redeployment of forces in Sinai that was meant to counter the global jihad elements in the peninsula.

There is good reason to believe that these professional ties will continue, perhaps even improve. Although the protesters in Tahrir held on to tradition by chanting anti-Israeli slogans, such chants have more to do with what they were taught to believe than with any core conviction. Their rage is directed at Hamas in the Gaza Strip more than at the Jewish state, because the former represents the Muslim Brotherhood.

From a regional viewpoint, the Muslim Brotherhood has made enormous strides over the past several years.

One state after another fell by the wayside, and the Brotherhood filled in the vacuum. Each victory propelled them to the next.

Among the affected countries, Egypt is the most important; if the Muslim Brotherhood's gains could be undone in Cairo, perhaps too in other Arab states, one after another.

As they say in Arabic, inshallah (God willing).

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