Change You Can Believe In: Foreign Policy Gaffes

Following up on yesterday's story from the UK Telegraph on Obama's disinterest in foreign policy, here's more coverage of the Obama Administration's gaffes:


Brit reporters in bit of a snit over lack of Obama-Brown news conference

They see it as a snub.

"Embarrassing," says Benedict Brogan of The Mail. Embarrassing, that is, for Brown.

"Mr. Brown might lament," writes Toby Harnden of The Telegraph, "that despite the so-called 'special relationship' Britain is now getting the same treatment as the president of Uruguay but he need not despair. I'm told there's a chance he might get drinks with Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday evening."

Excellent, Obama snubbed our best ally. What does the rest of the world think when it sees this? Our enemies must be licking their chops, hoping to take advantage of this fissure.

Obama's blockbuster gift for Brown: 25 classic films

No10 had tried to keep the present a secret, refusing to answer reporters who asked what President Obama had given to mark the reaffirmation of the special relationship. However, the Evening Standard discovered the truth through White House insiders.

One reason for the secrecy might be that the gift seems markedly less generous and thoughtful than the presents taken to Washington by the Prime Minister.

Obama's gift was so embarrassingly inappropriate and offensive that PM Brown tried to hide it.

Now, Hillary gets into the act:

Wrong red button

“We worked hard to get the right Russian word. Do you think we got it?” Clinton said as reporters, allowed in to observe the first few minutes of the meeting, watched.

“You got it wrong,” Lavrov said, to Clinton’s clear surprise. Instead of "reset," he said the word on the box meant “overcharge.”

Clearly they didn't work hard enough. Seriously, how do you get ONE word wrong?

Russian media teases Clinton over 'reset' button

A correspondent for NTV television called it a "symbolic mistake," pointing out that US-Russian ties had become overcharged in recent years due to discord over such issues as missile defence and last summer's war in Georgia.

…"Yet this curious episode did not stop Clinton and Lavrov from pushing the button in front of television cameras."

Just the right footing when you want to reset your relationship with a country! And, what exactly are we resetting to - the Cold War? - WWII?

Tongue-tied Clinton gets warm EU welcome

Hillary Clinton raised eyebrows on her first visit to Europe as secretary of state when she mispronounced her EU counterparts' names and claimed U.S. democracy was older than Europe's.

…One working lunch later with EU leaders, Clinton raised more eyebrows when she referred to EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who stood beside her, as "High Representative Solano."

She also dubbed European Commission External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner as "Benito."

I thought only idiots like Bush could make mistakes like that! And of course this article defends her saying she hadn't gotten much sleep on her whirlwind tour.


Isn't it great we elected "hope and change" instead of someone with a proven track record of experience and responsibility?

More to come tomorrow...