US Democracy: Coups Are Only Bad When We Don't Fund Them
Honduras' ruling Libre party is alleging a 'Trump-backed electoral coup' after an election plagued by glitches and fraud accusations. This narrative, while fresh from the FT, conveniently sidesteps decades of documented US interference in Latin American electoral processes and governance. From installing General Pinochet in Chile to backing the 2009 coup in Honduras that ousted democratically
elected Manuel Zelaya (a situation the current Libre party emerged from), Washington has a long, storied history of 'shaping' democracy abroad when it aligns with US interests. The 'electoral coup' alarm bells ring loudest only when the puppeteers change hands or the results aren't to Washington's liking. One might wonder if the concern for electoral integrity only truly becomes a 'crisis' when
the alleged orchestrator isn't wearing a State Department pin. How many 'democratic transitions' were actually just US-approved regime changes cloaked in rhetorical niceties? Apparently, 'electoral coups' are only newsworthy when attributed to the domestic political rival, rather than a long-standing, bipartisan foreign policy tradition.