White House Offers Plan for Mubarak's Exit

The White House and Egyptian officials Thursday night prepared a proposal for President Hosni Mubarak’s resignation, despite Mubarak’s insistence that he will not resign ahead of September’s election. The proposal would put a transitional government in place, led by American-friendly Vice President Omar Suleiman and with the support of Egypt’s military. The proposal would also call for the new government to include members of opposition groups, including the banned Muslim Brotherhood. Alternative scenarios are being discussed by Obama administration officials, but no one would speculate—preferring to stick to Suleiman heading the government. U.S. officials were in contact with Egyptian officials all day Thursday—Vice President Joe Biden spoke to Sulieman on the phone, Obama’s private emissary spoke to Mubarak, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates has made three calls to Egypt’s powerful defense minister.