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- GRAPEVINE, Page 17She Just Can't Get Any Respect
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- By PAUL GRAY/Reported by David Ellis
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- After 100 days of ruling Nicaragua, what power does the
- Violeta Chamorro government actually wield? Not much, according
- to State Department officials, who believe that the ousted
- Sandinistas still run the country. "The civilians hold the
- offices, but the Sandinistas have all of the muscle, and they
- monitor phone calls at will," says a U.S. diplomat just back
- from Nicaragua. Humberto Ortega, brother of the ex-President
- and Chamorro's army chief, earns grudging American respect as
- the most politically adroit figure in the country. Chamorro
- gets a harsh assessment. "Even her friends call her `Rag Doll,'"
- says the U.S. official. "She's basically apolitical and wants
- Nicaragua to be a big happy family. Not surprisingly, nobody
- respects her. Ministers ignore the orders she signs."
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