America was for democracy before it was against it?

As street protests started intensifying in Egypt, I blogged earlier that the US will have a tough time figuring out how to deal with the "our son a bitch" realpolitik that America has been pursuing, well, forever.
Vice President Joe Biden, who for decades was a senator who was actively involved with foreign policy issues as well, says that Mubarak is no dictator. 

Asked if he would characterize Mubarak as a dictator Biden responded: “Mubarak has been an ally of ours in a number of things. And he’s been very responsible on, relative to geopolitical interest in the region, the Middle East peace efforts; the actions Egypt has taken relative to normalizing relationship with – with Israel. … I would not refer to him as a dictator.”

Really?  What then are the markings of a dictator?
Here is a headline from a few hours ago:

US speaks again, but no one seems to be listening

The Daily Show does a fantastic job of examining the American commitment to democracy:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Rule of the Nile
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