Cook: Democracy Promotion Programs in Egypt Are “Futile”

Steven Cook writes in Newsweek that America’s democracy promotion programs in Egypt are doing more harm than good and that the Obama Administration should focus on fostering economic development and alleviating poverty instead. Initiatives such as conferences on political reform for Egyptian governors are “futile,” Cook argues, and he laments that the increase in democracy promotion funding under Bush came at the expense of development programs such as aid to poor farmers.

Cook notes that after an initial period of liberalization in the middle of the decade, the Mubarak regime quickly returned to its old repressive ways, suggesting that Bush’s Freedom Agenda did little to promote democracy. Of course, some have argued that Cairo’s authoritarian backsliding was a result of the Bush administration easing up on its initial pressure for reform.