Thanks to a slew of gaffes, blunders, miscalculations and alarming personality revelations, Obama has become a surprising liability where our reputation abroad is concerned – surprising not only because he was elected, in part, to restore our supposedly damaged image overseas, but also because he was touted as a smooth and charming diplomat.
But whatever generosities we afforded the inexperienced junior senator from Illinois, smooth and charming he is not, it turns out. And these rookie mistakes are getting downright embarrassing.
The latest came last week, when the President sent the G-20 a pointed but pleading letter imploring Europe to quit it already with all the sensible spending cuts. He apparently believes that if we are going to spend our way into oblivion, then Europe should have the good manners to join us. Misery loves company, after all, and so does bankruptcy.
It’s unlikely Europe was moved. In fact, Germany and Britain, which just announced major spending cuts, are probably laughing at us, with a sharp view of Greece in their rearview mirror. Obama’s letter wasn’t only myopic but terribly arrogant – the kind of thing that would have earned his predecessor another colorful “cowboy” descriptor from the oft-offended liberal press.
……The President’s tepid response to Iran’s and North Korea’s nuclear promises undoubtedly has the leaders of both nations in stitches as they try not to lose sleep over the threat of . . . drumroll . . . more sanctions. We hardly need to impress Kim Jong Il or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but it would be nice if they were just a little afraid of us.
Also embarrassing is Obama’s audacity in Afghanistan, where he’s haughtily asking for more international support while simultaneously chirping on about our looming withdrawal date. It appears that Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who delivered shockingly candid (and highly inappropriate) remarks to Rolling Stone about the President, isn’t particularly pleased with Obama, either.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/06/23/2010-06-23_and_you_thought_bush_was_embarrassing_obamas_policies_are_leaving_americans_red_.html
The most asinine statement in Obama’s letter is this:
We must be flexible in adjusting the pace of consolidation and learn from the consequential mistakes of the past when stimulus was too quickly withdrawn and resulted in renewed economic hardships and recession.
We’re suffering 15% unemployment, a $13 trillion debt, and a trade deficit of $109 billion. Our economy’s in the toilet as a result of the consequential mistakes of Obamanomics.
Europe has finally decided to bring its out-of-control spending to a halt, but Obama wants them to stick with the program and keep going with us into the abyss.
The contents of Obama’s pithy lecture to Europe is at the link:
http://www.businessinsider.com/obama-sends-letter-to-g20-leaders-begging-them-to-keep-the-stimulus-pump-going-2010-6
All throughout the campaign, there was plenty of fair warning from the rightwing blogosphere about Obama’s lack of character, inexperience, narcissism, and socialist stupidity.
Now his fans react with injured surprise, Europe has fallen off the Messiah bandwagon, and our enemies yawn at his foreign policy.
They could have supported the McCain/Palin ticket and saved themselves some embarrassment.