Harper’s Magazine points out that Bush signed a presidential proclamation in 2004 that bars corrupt foreign officials from entering the United States.
If you read Obiang’s rap sheet on State Department website and at Amnesty International and then read Section One of the proclamation, you’ll wonder how he ever was allowed into the country.
First thing you’ll need to know to figure out why he was welcomed as a “friend” is that they’ve got lots of oil in Equatorial Guinea. (As they say in Texas, “Oil people is good people!”) Next you’ll need to read Sections Two, Three and Six of the proclamation where you’ll find that Section One doesn’t apply if the visit “is not contrary to the interests of the United States” and that it’s up to the Secretary of State to decide when and to whom the proclamation applies.
Condi, Condi, Condi… Why do you hate America so much?
It looks to me like Bush’s proclamation works about like everything else he’s signed as president: The rule applies unless of course it doesn’t.
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