El Sisi has “no doubt” Trump will make a strong president
IT’S ALL NEW YORK, ALL THE TIME. The international conversation about Egypt is still being driven this morning by President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s visit to New York and, in particular, his sit-downs with US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.
We also expect Egypt’s record on migrants to come under international scrutiny after the capsizing yesterday of a migrant ship with an estimated 600 people on board. The fate of most passengers remains unclear, and “scores” are dead. The story has already been picked up by the Wall Street Journal (which notes 41 dead and 155 rescued, leaving possibly more than 400 missing so far) as well as BBC, AFP, Associated Press and Reuters, guaranteeing wide pickup by bother media outlets.
EL SISI IS OKAY WITH TRUMP OR CLINTON: Asked during an interview with CNN whether Donald Trump would make a good president, El Sisi replied simply “no doubt.” El Sisi had similar views regarding Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, telling CNN’s Erin Burnett, “Political parties in the United States would not allow a candidate to reach that level unless they are qualified” (1:15). Clinton’s past comments describing Egypt as a dictatorship have not fazed El Sisi, as he reckons there will be “no chance for a dictatorship” in Egypt as long as there is a constitution.
VERBATIM: El Sisi on Trump’s Muslim ban, speaking through a translator: “The United States in general conducts very strict security measures for everyone who wishes to visit, and this has been in place for quite a few years. It’s also important for us to note that during election campaigns, many things are said … however, afterwards, the actual governing of the country would be something different and subject to many factors. … I don’t want to be unfair to anyone here. During election campaigns, there could be a perception based on a certain vision or point of view, and then that is corrected and it develops as a result of governing experience and … advice from experts.” (watch, run time 1:40)
The El Sisi-Burnett interview airs on CNN International on Saturday (3pm CLT and 9pm CLT), Sunday (4pm CLT) and Monday (2:30am CLT) on CNN International. Look for the show called “OutFront.”