Nicaragua's Ortega Swirls in Controversy on Eve of Presidential Elections

Shame on you, Daniel Ortega. You're about to be reelected as president of Nicaragua, for the third time, thanks to trickery, scare tactics and cronyism. You've even been able to bend the rules and your country's constitution, due to judges in high places who are on your payroll.

You used to be a pretty good guy, Daniel, with strong moral values. Your Sandinista National Liberation Front toppled a hated dictator, Anastasio Somoza, in 1979. Your Socialist plan had merit, since Nicaragua, next to Haiti, was the most impoverished nation in the Western Hemisphere. You eventually seized the moment and became president in 1985. But folks weren't too happy with you either.

Sadly, you reneged on your promise of land reform, gobbling up valuable estates only to achieve personal wealth and power for the Sandinista Party. Your shenanigans cost you the 1990 election, losing to a woman, Violeta Chamorro, a defector from your own movement. Then you would be defeated twice more, in 1996 and 2001. That's when you dug in your heels, like a true revolutionary hero. Sly like a fox, you went underground to win over friends with money and promises of influential Sandinista positions.

Poised for another run at the presidency in 2006, you renewed an idealistic relationship with Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's "president for life." Together you both organized a well timed, 80,000 gallon delivery of diesel to Nicaragua's shores just before voters went to the polls. Then as a special favor, Chavez used his nationalized oil profits to create a $1.4 billion fund you could personally administer. Not being greedy in nature, you were clever with that money, "buying" Nicaragua's Supreme Court judges so you could alter the constitution. First, you lobbied to lower the winning margin for presidential primaries to 35%. Then you took a page out of Hugo's playbook by suggesting that term limits for presidents should be abolished.

All this was helpful, Daniel, when you prevailed in winning your current stint for high office, a victory assured after the death of your main opponent, Herty Lewites. First on your agenda was not to fix domestic issues, but to have a splashy meeting with Iran's renegade boss Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This laid the groundwork for Venezuela's unusual military maneuvers with the Islamic republic. You also meddled in the affairs of Colombia, at Hugo's urging, taking sides with ally Ecuador against the United States. You even had sympathetic meetings by phone with the ill-fated Muammar Gaddafi.

So how will you play out your presumed victory on November 5th, Daniel? At age 65, will you quit acting like a child and improve the plight of your own people? Will you actually put Nicaragua before your own selfish motives?

Now is your chance to make things right. If you don't, your legacy will be no more favorable than that of the Somoza dynasty.