Is it politics or professional wrestling?

The struggle between the Islamist movement and the government is passing what seems to be a point of no return. Following loud accusations that the government was involved in forging the municipal elections, the prime minister launched an all out attack on the Muslim Brotherhood. Abu Aardvark has an excellent review of the details.

Lost in the scuffle is whether cheating actually occurred. Most people and a lot of anecdotal evidence suggest that there was cheating, although the scale of this is not yet known. I tend not to be persuaded with what most people think, as many Jordanians are more than willing to believe even the most absurd rumors. The government response has evaded the main charge and focused on MB intentions. Jamil Nimri’s editorial suggests tacitly that the state has decided that “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure” and that they will use “available tools without timidity or fear of accusations of bias”. This does not leave much to the imagination. They will do whatever it takes to prevent the Islamists from taking power. This was not an outcome that would have transpired anyway, because the number of Islamist candidates was too small, their popularity was too low and the elections were for municipal councils that have little bearing on state policy.

Yasser Abu Hilaleh suggests that this will increase the popularity of the MB. I am not sure that if this was not the desired outcome. The popularity of the Islamists was in a slump, with many people angry and distrusting of them. What better way to give them a boost than to arrange an elaborate theater? I can think of no other reason to intervene blatantly in elections in favor of the side that was going to win anyway. The only other explanation I can think of is plain stupidity.

Jordanian politics is a lot like watching the Harlem Globetrotters playing the Washington Generals. Of course, the Globetrotters always win, because the Generals are there for the specific purpose of losing. In the final analysis it is a theater which needs to maintain some semblance of competition. The removal of the Generals would mean that smart, credible political parties with Jordan’s interest at heart may start to rise from the shadows. Notwithstanding all the theater, the powers that be in Jordan are not interested in such an outcome.