Obama won't attend Paris march

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Agence France Presse


http://i.imgur.com/tiuY3yol.jpg

Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama will not join other world leaders at Sunday's Paris march in tribute to the victims of this week's Islamist attacks in France, a US official told AFP.

Ever since the bloody shooting that killed 12 people at satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday -- followed by separate attacks that left five more people dead -- Obama has made repeated declarations in support of America's "oldest ally."

But he will not join other leaders including British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, all set to attend the march.

More than a million people were expected to go.

"I want the people of France to know that the United States stands with you today, stands with you tomorrow," Obama said Friday, following three days of bloodshed.

On Thursday, Obama wrote the Gallic slogan "Vive la France!" in a condolence book during a visit to the embassy in Washington.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Maybe if they had held it on a golf course and Al Sharpton was gonna be there, then out 'glorious leader' could have found time to attend. :roll:

[RBP]

Nor Biden, nor Kerry, not Holder.... I am not freaked out about it though.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

It's disrespectful at the very least

[RBP]

I need more context I guess. So they had a big rally, okay. Why is the world suddenly paying attention? Because France says so?

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Why did people not in the United States care about 9-11? :dunno:

[RBP]

They did but they laid wreaths in their own countries. Did they all fly here? Besides, 12 dead is not even remotely 9/11.

That's a weekend in Chicago. :lol:

[redred]

Sometimes you just can't get to places

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Sometimes you just can't get to places

I'm pretty sure the President of the United States doesn't fly commercial

[redred]

Other commitments :shrug: or a waste of tax payers money flying across the pond and back for a 1/2hour arm in arm walk about

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Other commitments :shrug: or a waste of tax payers money flying across the pond and back for a 1/2hour arm in arm walk about

:serious:

He wastes more taxpayer money on a daily basis on stupid shit than any president in history, at least doing this would have shown respect.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Funny, he can make time to golf 29857398752903847 times a year and be on the Letterman show, but he's just too darned busy to find time in his busy schedule for this. :rolleyes:

[redred]

Like rbp said I don't remember others doing this walk thing for 9 11 or the London bus bombing

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Charles Roberts - Opposing Views


More than 40 world leaders came together in France on Sunday in a show of solidarity against the attacks waged by Islamic militant extremists last week. Among the dignitaries in attendance were British Prime Minister David Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In a stunning display, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas put their differences aside to march together in the massive 'unity' rally that had a historic turnout of more than three million people.

It seemed as though everyone, no matter their past differences, understood the importance of what was happening.

Noticeably absent from Sunday’s rally? Any major figure from the United States.

Ambassador Jane Hartley was the highest-ranked American representative in attendance during the march. Attorney General Eric Holder was in Paris over the weekend, but he only attended a meeting called by French President Francois Hollande. He did not bother to stay beyond that.

The visible nonattendance by recognizable U.S. officials led many to ask: Where was President Barack Obama? Where was Vice President Joe Biden?

This was President Obama’s public schedule for Sunday, Jan. 11:

http://i.imgur.com/qQ9m0AX.jpg

And this was Vice President Biden’s public schedule for Sunday, Jan. 11:

http://i.imgur.com/JqN6UYi.jpg

The White House has refused to comment on why neither one attended yesterday’s event despite their open schedules.

President Obama is set to start the week on Monday by holding a privacy speech at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). He will then welcome the NBA champion San Antonio Spurs to the White House.

[redred]

I also think it was a rather silly idea a few days before you have people running around with rpg's the girlfriend of one is still missing then you have a gathering in public of world leaders , a bit far fetched but it wouldn't take a lot for there to be another rpg hid near by and a lovely target for IS to try and hit

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Jake Tapper, CNN


http://i.imgur.com/L9hOjhk.jpg
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, from left, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita,
French President Francois Hollande, Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi walk together as they lead
thousands of people during the rally.

Editor's Note: "Jake Tapper is anchor of CNN's "The Lead With Jake Tapper" and chief Washington correspondent."

Paris (CNN)"Thank you," said the man. I was standing outside of the offices of Charlie Hebdo covering the aftermath of the terrorist attacks for CNN. He was thanking me just for being here, just for covering the event and its aftermath, what Le Monde referred to as France's September 11. And his appreciation was echoed by French citizen after French citizen.

The rally Sunday for unity drew 1.5 million people in Paris and more than twice that nationwide; it was like nothing I've ever seen or covered. Our nation's oldest ally stood firm. A young Muslim Frenchwoman held a sign saying "Je suis Juif."

A man and his son came over to me holding a sign saying "I disapprove of what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it," beseeching me to share their message with the American people. And world leaders were standing together amidst a procession that included Francois Hollande of France, Angela Merkel of Germany, David Cameron of Great Britain, Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority and Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, along with the leaders of Mali, Jordan and Turkey.

It is no small thing for the king of Jordan, a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed, to march in a rally prompted by the murders of people who mocked Islam as well as of innocent Jews -- all of whom were killed by Islamic extremists.

The United States, which considers itself to be the most important nation in the world, was not represented in this march -- arguably one of the most important public demonstrations in Europe in the last generation -- except by U.S. Ambassador Jane Hartley, who may have been a few rows back. I didn't see her. Even Russia sent Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

I say this as an American -- not as a journalist, not as a representative of CNN -- but as an American: I was ashamed.

I certainly understand the security concerns when it comes to sending President Barack Obama, though I can't imagine they're necessarily any greater than sending the lineup of other world leaders, especially in aggregate.

But I find it hard to believe that collectively President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Attorney General Eric Holder -- who was actually in France that day for a conference on counterterrorism -- just had no time in their schedules on Sunday. Holder had time to do the Sunday shows via satellite but not to show the world that he stood with the people of France?

There was higher-level Obama administration representation on this season's episodes of "The Good Wife" on CBS.

I get that the President visited the French Embassy in Washington and that Secretary of State John Kerry spoke in French, and I certainly understand that the American commitment to security in Europe rivals no other. But with all due respect, those are politicians spending money that they didn't earn and sending troops whom they don't know.

And this is not just a matter of the current occupant of the White House.

I find it hard to believe that Speaker of the House John Boehner and new Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had more worthy pursuits on Sunday than standing side-by-side with our French brothers and sisters as they came together in an inspirational way.

After September 11, the first world leader to visit the United States was France's Jacques Chirac, though the most forceful conversation about France in Congress that I can recall came a few years later during debate over whether to invade Iraq and revolved around renaming pommes frites in the U.S. House cafeteria.

And I'm frankly floored that not one of the people who is contemplating running for president in 2016 has yet to even tweet on the subject of the momentous demonstration in Paris, much less attend France's biggest rally in the history of the republic.

I imagine that Hillary Clinton and her husband are kicking themselves for not hopping on a corporate jet to get here. Can you picture Hillary and Bill walking in the front row, arm-in-arm with Netanyahu and Hollande?

Chris Christie, Scott Walker and Paul Ryan attended the Green Bay-Dallas football game Sunday and at least one of them sent his potential rivals mischievous tweets as if they were contemplating running for president of Beta Theta Pi.

And Jeb? Mitt? Crickets.

Why? I hope it's not American arrogance, a belief that everyone should express shock when something bad happens to us but that our presence at an international rally is worth less than a ticket to the Green Bay game when the victims speak in accents we don't understand.

I suppose there's always the risk that coming to an event like this as an American leader and getting stuck in the third row could be embarrassing or could lead to accusations that you're trying to capitalize on a tragedy.

But that's not how it would have been interpreted in France.

People here are happy that Americans care. They're eager and appreciative of any evidence of that. And I know it exists -- although American Twitter seemed much more focused on the Golden Globes than anything else Sunday night.

I only wish our leaders had done a better job of showing solidarity with the passion for the freedoms exemplified by the rally.

[DemonGeminiX]

If anybody had an excuse to not be there, it would be Netanyahu. He'd be a prize to Muslim extremists, yet he was still there.

[RBP]

Maybe Obama could start with actually saying it was an Islamist Terror attack. The administration still hasn't. Listen I get it, but this is for show not action. It changes nothing and I am not upset about it. The terrorists couldn't give a fuck about a march. If anything it acknowledges that they got in their heads, which is the definition of terrorism.

[perrhaps]

Maybe Obama could start with actually saying it was an Islamist Terror attack. The administration still hasn't.

Can you say "Work place incident"?

[RBP]

I have decided what it is. It's the French. It's as if suddenly terrorism is worse and more abhorrent because they dared to attack Paris... PARIS. For god's sake, it's PARIS!! I realized this when I saw a post that scanned Paris and said it was "too beautiful to let them win".

Wait, what?

It wasn't bad enough when ISIS was in the mountains slaughtering ethnic minorities? It wasn't bad enough when London was bombed? Why suddenly is it millions marching and chanting and world leaders joining hands... Jews and Palestinians included.

Because it's Paris. PARIS!! It's the French, and they've all gotten laid there. The pompous, self-indulged, self-righteous French. It's as if they started killing babies! Oh wait, they did, just not in PARIS.

So, fuck you.