Can the OAS Save Bolaños?
Before Ortega pledged not to purse impeachment, it seemed that the president’s only hope for survival in office would be through the direct intervention of the Organization of American States (OAS). Aside from eight party deputies in the legislature, Bolaños has virtually no political support in the National Assembly. However, he has received noteworthy backing from abroad. In an October 16 press release, U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher expressed the Bush administration’s strong support for the besieged Nicaraguan president, stating, “We deplore recent politically motivated attempts, based on dubious legal precedent, to undermine the constitutional order in Nicaragua.” He also praised Bolaños’ “efforts to eradicate corruption and promote democracy” and called on the OAS to come to his aid. In a mid-October meeting in Managua of Central American leaders, the presidents of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, as well as the Panamanian vice president and the foreign minist
