Musharraf, Lincoln, FDR and Glass Houses

General Pervez Musharraf suspended the Pakistan constitution, fired the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and dispensed police officers to enforce martial law in Pakistan. All this to "save the nation". He also closed down the country's privately owned television stations.

The Supreme Court justices were ordered to take an oath to abide by the "provisional constitutional order" that Musharraf has temporally implemented to replace the country's existing Constitution. Any Supreme Court justice who refused to take a new oath to uphold the new "provisional constitutional order" would be fired. Seven of the eleven justices refused to take the oath and were fired by Musharraf, including the Chief Justice Chaudhry who who was replaced by Abdul Hamid Doger--a sympathizer of Musharraf.

Interestingly, Musharraf played the Lincoln card by stating, "Abraham Lincoln usurped rights to preserve the union, and Pakistan comes first. Whatever I do is for Pakistan, and whatever anyone else thinks is secondary."

Musharraf's new Supreme Court has dismissed all legal challenges to his rule and the suspension of the country's constitution. The newly anointed Supreme Court Chief Justice, Abdul Hamid Doger, dismissed all challenges to Musharraf's win in last month's presidential elections on a technicality. The newly restructured Supreme Court is acting just as Musharraf has mandated-- nothing more, nothing less.

Immediately after Musharraf's re-coup d'état of Pakistan, the U.S. started in with condemnation of Musharraf even though their fingerprints are all over him and his administration. Musharraf has been given 10 billion dollars from the U.S. for the promise of helping eradicate Al Qaeda, with a wink and a nod, to become a good democrat someday--even though he achieved power via a 1999 coup d'état and has suspended the constitution twice.

Secretary of State Condeleezza Rice wants a "quick return to constitutional law." The White House called his action "very disappointing".