What New Nickname Has the Public Given Egyptian President Morsi? (Hint: Sounds Like a Fascist Dictator)

Egyptian democracy advocate Mohammed ElBaradei has already called President Mohammed Morsi the “new Pharaoh” and now Egyptian Twitter users are comparing his power grab to another famous dictator, granting him the nickname “Morsilini.” It’s even become a popular hashtag.

The President, who sprang from Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, last week granted himself sweeping powers including shielding himself from judicial review in order to “protect the revolution.” Egypt’s judiciary is calling his decrees an “unprecedented assault.”

Al Arabiya translated some of the tweets and reports:

…the microblogging site was flooded with the term, drawing hardhearted ties between fascist dictator Benito Mussolini and Egypt’s Islamist president.

“Mursi now has a critical hashtag called #Morsillini. A portmanteau of Mursi and Mussolini,” posted Twitter user @Bassem_Sabry.

And the label quickly prompted a few quips.

“Morsillini: ‘I twist the truth, I rule the world, my crown is called deceit I am the emperor of lies, you grovel at my feet,’” posted @ahmadfahmy.

“Morsillini: " I have the right to issue orders, laws and they can't be revoked. I have the right to jail you, execute you & marry your wife, " the same user tweeted.

And the news attracted a sarcastic putdown from Egyptian activist Lubna Darwish, who tweeted: “His excellency president #Morsillini, leader of government, parliament and constitution, head of fascism, and founder of the renaissance.

Italian dictator Benito Mussolini ruled Italy from 1922 to 1943 and is credited with founding Fascism. Among his acts were the dismantling of democratic institutions and crushing his political opponents through use of the secret police. He allied his country with Nazi Germany and Japan during World War II.

On Sunday, clashes continued in Egypt for a third day since Morsi issued his decrees. One teenager was killed and at least 40 injured.