Much of the talk after the massive march for free speech in Paris this weekend was the absence of President Barack Obama with other world leaders. It was an embarrassment for our country and slap in the face to the French. Instead, the Administration sent Jane Hartley, one of its bundlers turned diplomats who were given a major appointment for raising money for the President. Even though Attorney General Eric Holder was in Paris that very day, he did not even stick around to march with other leaders. The Administration is now admitting that it blew it but there is a mystifying lack of basic competence and foresight at the White House at such moments. Rather than attend the rally, Obama stated in town for a photo op with the San Antonio Spurs. It was a shameful image to leave with French. This was not the only such controversy over who was present and who was not.
In what is an astonishing was the outburst from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the appearance of Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu. The French had asked Netanyahu not to attend but he insisted that he would be there. The French then arranged for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to attend as well. Erdogan however, lashed out at Netanyahu for “daring” to attend an anti-terror solidarity march as a leader of “state terrorism” against the Palestinians. He demanded that Netanyahu “give an account for the children, women you massacred.”
Many civil libertarians could ask for the same account from Erdogan who has rolled back on civil liberties, particularly free speech and free press rights in Turkey. For Erdogan to attend a free speech rally is like seeing former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad march at a gay rights rally.
Erdogan’s appearance only deepens the question of what the French are marching for in a country that has led the effort to regulate and curtail speech, including years of threats directed against the victims of these acts.
How could anyone think that Obama cares about some Frenchman getting killed by Muslims. He didn’t give a crap when our own ambassador was being killed and dragged through the street. He went back to sleep because he had an important fund raiser the next day.
When are you Obama cultist going to realize that he just doesn’t care?
Of course it would be a Texas Representative who would tweet something like this.
“Even Adolph [sic] Hitler thought it more important than Obama to get to Paris. (For all the wrong reasons.) Obama couldn’t do it for right reasons,” Weber tweeted.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/texas-congressman-randy-weber-hitler-tweet-114210.html#ixzz3OjMSLBye
Ok. Elaine. I understand. It is difficult to know which parts of your posts are your words or quotes from others. Perhaps italics for the quoted portions?
I agree on the hypocrisy of world leaders in some minor respects. Jailing and fining for publishing things that the government doesn’t like. THIS is why it is so very important that we, in the United States, protect our First Amendment rights so that we don’t end up in an American gulag for making fun of the powers that be or for posting dissenting opinions.
However, you can hardly make an equivalency with mass murder of not only journalists, humorists but also people shopping for kosher meat.
The President did not march because he is on the other side. His assistance to the Muslim brotherhood in Egypt, Libya and Syria is the bedrock of his foreign policy along with his basic Anti-Semitism and enmity to Israel. His ongoing attempts to allow Iran to get the bomb will be his next foreign policy milestone.
He is on the other side and now without an election he is free to show it.
DBQ,
I know Holder didn’t take part in the march. I just posted an excerpt from Scahill’s interview on Democracy Now. I think he made a good point about the hypocrisy of world leaders who had gone after journalists in their own countries marching in Paris.
@ Elaine
Holder did NOT attend the rally even though he was in the vicinity and could have arranged to do so. The only official that we had representing the US was the Ambassador. The US ambassador to France, Jane Hartley, appointed by Obama in June, was the sole official representative for America. A person who basically bought her position by bundling lots of dollars for Obama’s campaign. Obama gives out ambassador positions like door prizes to people who raised money for his campaigns.
http://nypost.com/2015/01/11/eric-holder-noticeably-absent-from-paris-unity-rally/
Perhaps we should have diplomats who are actually relevant to their positions and understand the country(s) that they are dealing with as well as being conversant in the nuances of International Diplomacy instead of just being a good shill for whatever party is in power at the time.
New theory: Obama, instead of going to Paris, had a photo op with the NBA World Champion San Antonio Spurs. Obama’s already working on his March Madness bracket.
OK, so the White House admitted that they screwed up. But the hardcore liberals still hold to the belief that Obama and his gang cannot possibly make a mistake. So, did Obama make a mistake in sending a rookie Ambassador to stand with Heads of State? Or did Obama make a mistake in admitting that he made a mistake? I’ll even make it multiple choice: A. Bush did it, too. B. The Koch brothers did it. C. Obama didn’t make a mistake because he didn’t make the decision to not go; he can’t be held responsible for decisions/actions of his administration, only himself.
I forgot to include the link to that Democarcy Now program that I posted an excerpt from in my previous comment.
http://www.democracynow.org/2015/1/12/circus_of_hypocrisy_jeremy_scahill_on
ieejcaroii,
I cannot honestly say I hate anyone. I have zero tolerance for liars, cowards and willfully ignorant people. I believe in being 100% confident of one’s opinions and 100% willing to change them if reason dictates they need to change. I understand human nature and believe one of the worst things the citizens of this country could ever do is to believe they can trust their government.
I don’t need ridiculous reasons to believe the current President and his administration have questionable motives. They have provided an abundance of coherent reasons to warrant serious scrutiny. To borrower a bit from Dr. King; I don’t judge a man by the color of his politics, I judge him by the content of his character. And I don’t care if he personally found a cure for my wife’s cancer today; his body of work deserves to be critiqued under the lens constitutionality and allegiance to ALL of the American people.
“Circus of Hypocrisy”: Jeremy Scahill on How World Leaders at Paris March Oppose Press Freedom
“Circus of Hypocrisy”: Jeremy Scahill on How World Leaders at Paris March Oppose Press Freedom
Excerpt:
JEREMY SCAHILL: Yeah, well, I mean, first of all, you know, what we saw yesterday on display, on the one hand, was very heartening, to see so many people come into the streets. And, you know, one of the core issues of press freedom, if this is a moment where the whole world is saying we have to have a free press, and that no matter how controversial or hateful some of the speech is or may be interpreted in some communities, that we judge a free press by how we treat the journalists or the stories that we don’t like or that we’re offended by.
But on the other hand, this is sort of a circus of hypocrisy when it comes to all of those world leaders who were marching at the front of it. I mean, every single one of those heads of state or representatives of governments there have waged their own wars against journalists. You know, David Cameron ordered The Guardian to smash with a hammer the hard drives that stored the files of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. Blasphemy is considered a crime in Ireland. You had multiple African and Arab leaders whose own countries right now have scores of journalists in prison. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Israel has targeted for killing numerous journalists who have reported on the Palestinian side, have kidnapped, abducted, jailed journalists. You know, there’s this controversy right now: Why didn’t President Obama go, or why didn’t Joe Biden go? You know, Eric Holder was there already and was representing the United States.
I think that we should remember—and I was saying this on Twitter over the weekend—that Yemen should have sent the Yemeni journalist Abdulelah Haider Shaye as their representative. He, of course, was in prison for years on the direct orders of President Obama for having reported on secret U.S. strikes in Yemen that killed scores of civilians. Or Sudan should have sent Sami al-Hajj, the Al Jazeera cameraman who was held for six years without charge in Guantánamo and repeatedly interrogated by U.S. operatives who were intent on proving that Al Jazeera had some sort of a link to al-Qaeda. So, you know, while there is much to take heart in, in terms of this huge outpouring of support for freedom of the press, hypocrisy was on full display in the streets of Paris when it came to the world leaders.
Chip – excellent article.
How can Obama attend a rally, or send a high ranking official, when he told the UN General Assembly in 2012 that “The future must not belong to those who slander the name of the Prophet of Islam”?
His reaction just cements this position.
I feel sorry for Earnest. Tough job.
Karen you take the presidents out of context to make it look like he said something he did not:
The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam. Yet to be credible, those who condemn that slander must also condemn the hate we see when the image of Jesus Christ is desecrated, churches are destroyed, or the Holocaust is denied. Let us condemn incitement against Sufi Muslims, and Shiite pilgrims. It is time to heed the words of Gandhi: “Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit.” Together, we must work towards a world where we are strengthened by our differences, and not defined by them. That is what America embodies, and that is the vision we will support.http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/328483/obama-future-must-not-belong-those-who-slander-prophet-islam-katrina-trinko
He also said re the paris attack: Of course, we don’t have to read a 2012 speech to understand Obama’s perspective on the Charlie Hedbo attack. The President released a statement on 7 January 2015 saying Paris will endure “beyond the hateful vision” of those responsible:
France is America’s oldest ally, and has stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States in the fight against terrorists who threaten our shared security and the world. Time and again, the French people have stood up for the universal values that generations of our people have defended. France, and the great city of Paris where this outrageous attack took place, offer the world a timeless example that will endure well beyond the hateful vision of these killers. We are in touch with French officials and I have directed my Administration to provide any assistance needed to help bring these terrorists to justice.”
http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/obamafuture.asp#4OSLFGD46TCAdkGI.99
Obama will always be synonymous with Obamacare to me. He put a wrecking ball through middle class business owner’s finances. Any rebukes he gets from me are well-earned, and have nothing to do with his basal melanin concentration.
The France snafu was merely an etiquette and diplomacy debacle. In the grand scheme of things, it’s Obamacare, dishonesty, and the mountain of legal scandals like inappropriate executive orders that matter most.
All the WH has to do is hold up a “We are Charlie” sign, and preferably the latest cover of the magazine with the cartoon, to smooth over the solidarity faux pas.
Best explanation I’ve seen…
http://tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/188248/why-obama-wasnt-in-paris
What a mess. This administration in general really struggles with foreign affairs.
What was most troubling is that the WH claimed that Eric Holder attended a rally when he didn’t. Again, the administration has a challenging relationship with the truth and facts.
I also agree that Obama himself should not have gone, considering there have been terror attacks and the military would have to basically take over to ensure his safety. But a high ranking official should have prominently attended. Why didn’t they know this?
And it was entirely appropriate, if unsafe, for Netanyahu to attend, in light of the terrorist attack at the Kosher grocery store, and rising anti-semitism in the UK. It was a security risk for him, but he tends to put issues over his own personal safety. Erdogan’s ironic protest just shines the light on the real issues in the UK and ME.
@ leejcarrol
The snub was not necessarily that the President himself did not go to the march. In fact it was probably a good thing he didn’t since it would be a distraction from the event and cause too much disruption with security etc……not to mention the cost to the taxpayer for shutting him and his gigantic entourage around.
Likely the same reasons that Putin didn’t go. The Pope is not a political figure and should NOT be there as a representative of the Catholic Church especially if we are trying to distinguish between radical Islamists and peaceful Muslims. The Pope also has high security needs
The snub is that Obama and/or his administration didn’t even thing highly enough of the incident to send ANYONE of suitable diplomatic standing to represent the United States. Not even worth doing an RSVP to the party. A deliberate or stupid clueless snub. Probably both, considering that Holder was actually in the same area at the time and could easily have attended.
Frankly. I’m glad this happened as it makes it quite plain to the Europeans and the rest of the world where this President and his administration stand in relation to terrorism, stopping Radical Islam and where the rest of the world ranks on his list of priorities. Below watching a sports event on television, evidently
LeeJ, it’s incessant.
to not going over the same ground again and again. Not sure there is more to say anyway Nick calls cultists, BBQ says Prez is in bed with Muslims, people have said he should have gone, it has become as too many of these seem to, to be an I hate the prez, he is a bad guy, a dumb guy, unqualified etc. We get it. Paul, Nick, Oily others hate the prez.
Ieejcaroii,
Move forward where? This is a thread ABOUT him not going to France, so I don’t know where you want it to go.
Oily doesn’t take courage I have said in many postings when I am not behind or even disappointed in this president, (and when I am proud of him and his administration for the many good things that so many here cannot stand that he has done,
I did not address in my comments how I felt about it. I think it was a bad decision not to go as he himself has admitted. Now can we go forward or will we stay stuck on what a bum he is because he didn’t go to France?
DBQ what proof do you have he is in bed with the Muslims other then the right wing talking points (Funny when I googled obama administration, islamic terrorism The page is populated with right wing sites and your talking points.