Why Didn't Obama Go To Paris?
It was no error.
Roger Simon writes at PJMedia:
A liberal friend emailed me that it was admittedly a "political mistake." "Political," yes, but "mistake"? I doubt the decision was made innocently or even faintly by mistake. Obama is a man known for his political expediency more than anything, indeed above anything, and also for being a constant campaigner. It was obvious that going to Paris would have been good public relations and that therefore not attending was a deliberate choice.There had to have been a reason for his non-attendance and the bizarre dissing of this event by his administration. I believe it stems from this: There are two words our president seems constitutionally unable to put together -- "Islamic" and "terrorism." For Obama (and, as a sideshow, the zany Howard Dean), these terms are mutually exclusive, an oxymoron. Appearing in Paris, Obama might be put in the unusual position of having to link them, our complaisant press rarely having the nerve to ask such an impertinent question. Holder, in a television interview from Paris (I think it was CNN -- there have been so many), danced around the question, hemming and hawing as if he couldn't quite make out what was being said or had been asked an embarrassing question about IRS emails.
Obama's shrinkage was shrinkier in the face of the statement by French Prime Minister Valls, declaring Saturday that France was at war with radical Islam. Via The NYT's Dan Bliefsky and Maia de la Baume:
"It is a war against terrorism, against jihadism, against radical Islam, against everything that is aimed at breaking fraternity, freedom, solidarity," Mr. Valls said during a speech in Évry, south of Paris.
Mais, oui! Or, in English: Fuck, yeah!
From Timothy Sandefur, what Obama should have said in Paris, had he gone.
Why Didn't Obama Go To Paris?
There are two perfectly rational reasons why Obama didn't go:
On a more serious note, I found this clip quite moving. Netanyahu visiting a Paris synagogue and the crowd, seemingly spontaneously, sings La Marseillaise:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nja48mIUIA
So, maybe Obama didn't go because he would have had to rub shoulders with Bibi?
Charles at January 12, 2015 5:41 AM
Obama remains afraid (politically or personally, I don't know which) of offending the Muslim world.
Participating in this march would have put him in the position of potentially offending those who are cheering (privately or publicly) the Paris attacks, those who hold that drawing and publishing the cartoon pictures of Mohammed was blasphemy and merited death.
Perhaps he fears being called an "Islamophobe."
Perhaps it was growing up in Indonesia that made him hypersensitive to Muslim indignation, like a Jew growing up in a Medieval European city who goes through life with the idea of not offending the local Christians always in the back of his mind.
Perhaps he has swallowed the UN human rights declarations which hold that anything declared blasphemous by a minority religion is hate speech.
Conan the Grammarian at January 12, 2015 8:42 AM
I believe that since Obama did not have to attend politically he saw no need for a USA representative to be there. Doubt it even crossed his mind.
As for why? I don't think we know what Obama really thinks. He was driven to achieve political success and he did what was necessary to do so.
Believe he lost interest in everything after he "won". It's not like he's BEST BUDS w/Democrats or anything so I don't see him as a party man.
He's now laid back, enjoying life, and writing his "legacy". NO worries.
Bob in Texas at January 12, 2015 9:34 AM
I saw an image on Twitter of the Paris march of leaders, and Teh Won was in it. He looked like he was using a sand wedge to get to the green.
Wut? that was a photoshop?
I R A Darth Aggie at January 12, 2015 9:59 AM
I am not in favor of demonstrations and marches.
Primarily because they are almost always a substitute for actually *doing something * to reduce terrorism, and hold the guilty parties accountable.
Isab at January 12, 2015 10:08 AM
He probably wasn't invited because there is not one western leader who will even talk to him because he is a back-stabbing liar. So he probably didn't even know it was going to happen until he saw it on TV
Recklessprocess at January 12, 2015 10:39 AM
Someone said on NPR this morning that Obama should at least have sent Bill Clinton, who would have been happy to go. Or Bush.
lenona at January 12, 2015 12:22 PM
Golf cart edition
I R A Darth Aggie at January 12, 2015 12:46 PM
Obama can't fathom Islamic terrorism? What utter bullshit. He's continued the Bush wars through his terms, expanded the kill-the-wedding-parties drone programs, shoved the NSA into every corner of our electronic lives, and kept Gitmo open.
The guy is a politician's politician, so whatever reason he didn't go to France (probably because it wouldn't be all about him), it wasn't because he's soft on terra.
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at January 12, 2015 5:13 PM
Amen, Gog.
Ken R at January 13, 2015 10:27 AM
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