As Egyptian protesters make plans to march on the palace of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Friday, the White House reportedly has been in talks with the embattled leader to resign immediately and turn over power to his vice president, Omar Suleiman. According to the New York Times:
Even though Mr. Mubarak has balked, so far, at leaving now, officials from both governments are continuing talks about a plan in which Mr. Suleiman, backed by Lt. Gen. Sami Enan, chief of the Egyptian armed forces, and Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi, the defense minister, would immediately begin a process of constitutional reform.
The proposal also calls for the transitional government to invite members from a broad range of opposition groups, including the banned Muslim Brotherhood, to begin work to open up the country’s electoral system in an effort to bring about free and fair elections in September, the officials said.
Senior administration officials said that the proposal was one of several options under discussion with high-level Egyptian officials around Mr. Mubarak in an effort to persuade the president to step down now.
Here's our chance to get on the right side of history and support truly free and fair elections in Egypt — even if the outcome isn't our dream scenario — instead of holding on to the past because we fear change. Let's walk our talk about freedom and democracy.
Sheryl Huggins Salomon is senior editor-at-large of The Root and a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based editorial consultant. Follow her on Twitter.