Search Opinion Related Morsi Defies Egypt Army’s Ultimatum to Bend to Protest (July 3, 2013) Connect With Us on Twitter For Op-Ed, follow @nytopinion and to hear from the editorial page editor, Andrew Rosenthal, follow @andyrNYT. OPED CONTRIBUTOR In Egypt, Democrats vs. Liberals By SAMER S. SHEHATA Published: July 2, 2013 WASHINGTON — MILLIONS of Egyptians have spoken: President Mohamed Morsi , elected a year ago, has failed. With vast throngs calling for his ouster and demanding new elections, the army has given him an ultimatum: satisfy the crowds by Wednesday evening or face military intervention. How could this happen, two years after the military helped demonstrators rid Egypt of the autocrat Hosni Mubarak? Egypt has a dilemma: its politics are dominated by democrats who are not liberals and liberals who are not democrats. The Muslim Brotherhood , Mr. Morsi’s Islamist movement, accepts — indeed excels at — electoral competition. Voters in 2012 gave it a far stronger grip on power than poll numbers had suggested. But that was foreseeable: though outlawed, the group built an effective political machine, starting in the 1980s, as individual members ran (as independents) in legislative and professional labor-union elections, even though Mr. Mubarak always found artifices to deny them real power. Fair elections have improved the Brotherhood’s campaign skills. But it hasn’t fully committed to pluralism or to equal rights for minorities. It participates in democracy, but doesn’t want to share power. Many in the opposition, on the other hand, believe fiercely in minority rights, personal freedoms, civil liberties and electoral coalition-building — as long as the elections keep Islamists out of power. In other words, they are liberal without being democrats; they are clamoring fervently for Mr. Morsi’s ouster and want the military to intervene. But they have proved themselves woefully unequipped to organize voters. Though my heart is with their democratic goals, I must admit that their commitment to democratic principles runs skin deep. So today, Egypt faces a disturbing paradox: an ostensibly democratic movement is calling on the military, which produced six decades of autocrats, to oust a democratically elected president — all in the name of setting the country, once again, on a path to democracy. Since Mr. Mubarak was ousted, I have visited Egypt a half-dozen times to study the course of democracy there, most recently in March. I can attest that a year ago, most Egyptians were eager to see the generals leave the scene. Indeed, Mr. Morsi’s most popular act remains his firing of the defense minister and the military’s chief of staff last August. MOST EMAILED RECOMMENDED FOR YOU Log in to discover more articles based on what you‘ve read. 1. Qatar’s Support of Islamists Alienates Allies Near and Far 2. Officials in Qatar Confirm Detention of Britons Researching Migrant Labor 3. TAKING NOTE Brandishing a Gun to Woo Voters 4. THE STONE Sam Harris's Vanishing Self 5. New Emblem of an Elemental Conflict: Seized West Bank Land 6. Palestinian Leader Assails Hamas, Calling Unity Pact Into Question 7. OPED | ALI JARBAWI Israel’s Lessons From the Gaza Wars 8. OPEN SOURCE Jailed for Protests, Activists in Egypt and Bahrain Turn to Hunger Strikes 9. Video: Players in the Coalition Against ISIS 10. Longtime Rivals Look to Team Up to Confront ISIS HOME PAGE TODAY'S PAPER VIDEO MOST POPULAR WORLD U.S. N.Y. / REGION BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY SCIENCE HEALTH SPORTS OPINION ARTS STYLE TRAVEL JOBS REAL ESTATE AUTOS FACEBOOK TWITTER GOOGLE+ SAVE EMAIL SHARE PRINT REPRINTS MORE IN OPINION (1 OF 30 ARTICLES) OpEd Contributor: Rural Capitals, Big Time Problems Read More » Log In Register Now Help SUBSCRIBE NOW U.S. Edition