If Mohamed ElBaradei ever had a chance to become America’s choice in Egypt (which I don’t think he ever did), that chance was lost with the election of Donald Trump. Among the candidates Trump considered for Secretary of State, was John Bolton, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations, with whom ElBaradei clashed numerous times during the Bush administration. It would be fair to say that Bolton hates ElBaradei on both a personal and political level, and though he was not selected for the top position, he is still likely to be appointed Deputy Secretary of State. He has, therefore, no hope of becoming America’s imperial appointee in Egypt.
I believe that the global owners of capital are probably inclined to replace Sisi next year with a civilian government,but this will have to be someone whose sense of entitlement (which ElBaradei has in droves) must be combined with dictatorial credentials. A pro-Western, pro-neoliberal businessman like Gamal Mubarak is a far more plausible choice than ElBaradei . I think the West is vaguely amused by ElBaradei’s ambitions, and his obsequious eagerness to be always “in the loop”, but they would never trust him. He tries too hard to ingratiate himself to power, he thinks he understands the game, but doesn’t.