Morsi Fires Public Prosecutor; Prosecutor Unfires Self; Judges Say He's Unfired

 Egypt's Public Prosecutor, Abdel Maguid Mahmoud, a Mubarak era leftover,. or "remnant" in the popular parlance, is not a popular man. The Islamists don't like him and neither do the left, revolutionaries, human rights activists, etc,, because he has jailed many of them. When the courts yesterday acquitted those charged with carrying out the notorious "Battle of the Camel," President Morsi seized the opportunity to announce that he had removed the Prosecutor in order to name him Ambassador to the Vatican. When it was pointed out that the President apparently has no authority to fire the Prosecutor, Morsi seemingly clarified matters by saying he had asked Mahmoud to resign. Mahmoud then clarified his position by saying he wasn't resigning, he wasn't fired, and he wasn't going anywhere. Now there are reports that the Judges' Syndicate, which doesn't like the Muslim Brotherhood and stands up for an independent judiciary, is backing Mahmoud.

Like the Presidential election runoff itself, these clashes where the choice is the Muslim Brotherhood or the falool (remnants) of Mubarak's regime tend to leave me wondering if there's a way they can both lose, but this looks like it may go on for a while.