Sec. Of State John Kerry Chills In Nantucket While Egypt Overthrows Its Government

Secretary of State John Kerry celebrated his Fourth of July by kicking back on Nantucket, even as Egypt is in the midst of a tumultuous military coup. (UPDATE: State Dept. response below)

Kerry was spotted “strolling” in downtown Nantucket, where the wealthy ex-Senator has a house and a yacht. Kerry had just returned home from a two week, 2,500 mile trip to the Middle East.

Turmoil in Egypt came to a head on Wednesday, when the military removed President Mohamed Morsi from power and suspended the constitution. The coup d’état catches the United States in a bind, as it timorously supported the Muslim Brotherhood-backed leader after he was democratically elected last year over the Hosni Mubarak-affiliated opponent, but now finds it bet on a losing horse. And with Egypt’s democracy still fledgling, the military occupying a sudden power vacuum, and thousands of protestors in the streets, the situation is unpredictable at best.

Kerry’s people maintain that he is engaged.

“Since his plane touched down in Washington at 4 a.m., Secretary Kerry was working all day and on the phone dealing with the crisis in Egypt,” his spokeswoman said Thursday. “He participated in the White House meeting with the President by secure phone and was and is in non-stop contact with foreign leaders, and his senior team in Washington and Cairo.”

Kerry, considered by almost all to be a superb statesman, nonetheless has a troubled history with his own aristocratic image. Photos of Kerry windsurfing did significant damage to his 2004 campaign after the Bush team seized on them to contrast Kerry with Bush’s faux-populist image.

UPDATE: The State Dept. denies Secretary Kerry was boating:

“Since his plane touched down in Washington at 4 a.m., Secretary Kerry was working all day and on the phone dealing with the crisis in Egypt,” spokesperson Jen Psaki said. “He participated in the White House meeting with the president by secure phone and was and is in non-stop contact with foreign leaders, and his senior team in Washington and Cairo. Any report or tweet that he was on a boat is completely inaccurate.”

Read the article here.

[h/t Boston Herald]

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