« Obama and McCain: the necessity of rebuilding the nation
Georgia Supreme Court weighing mandatory sentence imposed on sex offender »



From Der Tagesspiegel: Barack Obama Must ‘Take a Stand’

July 1st, 2008
By WILLIAM KERN

Print Print

Is Barack Obama’s honeymoon with Europe over already?

After months of the most effusive and unrestrained praise for America’s first serious Black presidential candidate, some of Obama’s most energetic European backers - the Germans - are growing skeptical.

Malte Lehming writes for Germany’s Der Tagesspiegel:

“In the end, a disappointment is a deceit. So it’s for the best that we cast a serous German glance in the direction of the American Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama. He has called for the death penalty for child rapists, defends the right to possess firearms and is the first candidate since the Watergate scandal to reject public financing of his election campaign in favor of private, unlimited contributions. ‘Hey,’ some on this side of the Atlantic now ask, ‘we thought he was one of us?’ Far from it.”

And the result of all this? Lehming goes on:

“The facade of the wise, eloquent and charming golden boy has begun to crumble. There is a second - other Obama. And he’s about to be discovered: unscrupulous, selfish, and overambitious.’

Lehming concludes with a little advice for Barack Obama:

“Who is the real Obama? Nobody knows for sure. For now because of his vagueness, it’s still possible to project various expectations onto him, in USA as well as in Europe. But here and there the impatience is growing: Obama, perhaps the first Black President, must not only be flexible, he has to take a stand.”

By Malte Lehming

Translated By Ulf Behncke

June 28, 2008

Germany - Der Tagesspiegel - Original Article (German)

In the end, a disappointment is a deceit. So it’s for the best that we cast a serous German glance in the direction of the American Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama. He has called for the death penalty for child rapists, defends the right to possess firearms and is the first candidate since the Watergate scandal to reject public financing of his election campaign in favor of private, unlimited contributions. “Hey,” some on this side of the Atlantic now ask, “we thought he was one of us?” Far from it. Obama isn’t running to be president in Europe, but in the United States.

Since it’s clear that he - and not Hillary Clinton - is the one in the running, a new phase in the U.S. election campaign has begun. Obama is the candidate of the left, but the people are in the center. So he must move as swiftly and as unnoticeably as possible, to avoid being stung by the accusation of being short on principles. This is a process that began long ago. Where once he said that he would completely renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, he now calls his toughest remarks on the subject “overheated.” Where he once said that he would meet with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad without preconditions, his team now stresses that arranging such a meeting would of course require some preparation. Where once he said that he would debate his Republican opponent McCain “anytime and anywhere,” his spokesperson has now strictly limited the number meetings to two. The facade of the wise, eloquent and charming golden boy has begun to crumble. There is a second - other Obama. And he’s about to be discovered: unscrupulous, selfish, and overambitious.

READ ON AT WORLDMEET.US, along with continuing translated foreign press coverage of the U.S. election.



This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 5:48 pm and is filed under US Constitution, Death Penalty, Moral Values, Justice Department, Political Philosophy, Columnists, Guns, White House, Foreign Policy, Domestic Surveillance, NAFTA, Pandering, Legitimacy, Primaries, Newsweek Blogitics, Newspapers, Hypocrisy, Gun Control, FBI, Military, Supreme Court, Religion, Foreign Affairs, Economy, Politics, 2008 Elections, Domestic Programs, Iraq, Democrats, Germany, CIA, Foreign Politics, Social Commentary, John McCain, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Law & Legal Matters. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Viewing 5 Comments

    • ^
    • v
    Germans sound like French. I am half french and the minute they like something they look for a reason not to.
    But, most in europe don't understand that Obama must pull more to the center. Not just because it's something done in the general but, even more so with Obama who has been haunted by the rumors of him being some scary fringie. He has to go more mainstream just to keep some people from freaking out.
    Germans do not understand the practical politics - as most of Europe doesn't.
    But, in a few weeks he will be in Europe on a visit and they will be in love again.
    So it goes.
    My cousin Doris is here visiting from France and I'll have to ask her on Friday in Chicago, where she is staying with my sister, what the thoughts are about our elections this year.
    • ^
    • v
    Maybe the Germans have the same fickle dynamic that our own media does when it gets bored. Or more likely they don't fully grasp the sometimes convoluted nature of our political system in the US, which in this case refers to Obama's need to appeal to non-liberals in order to be elected. John McCain will have the same challenge when it comes to appealing to non-conservatives. In any case, the Europeans have my sympathy; even folks who have lived here all their lives sometimes have trouble figuring it out.

    PS, I just read VWcat's comment, and see we have some overlap. Great minds think alike. ;-)
    • ^
    • v
    Well on the one hand, European criticism of Obama will bode well for his middle ground support. On the other hand, liberals usually identify with the European opinions...so....

    It just goes to show that he is moving away from his "liberal" political birth and rapidly sprinting towards any-way-the-wind blows.

    I'm sure we can count on him in a pinch to take a firm stand.

    Not.

    Meanwhile McCain is like the robotic clone of the Bush/Cheney sellout of America to the BigOil monopoly and anti-American economic sabotage.

    Who to choose? Slick or Oil Slick?

    Gosh, I wish there was another democratic candidate who got more votes than Obama. A candidate who has experience in the Whitehouse, who was say, one of the top confidants to a past president who carved our economy back into the strongest its ever been in US history. A candidate who has a history of being respected by foreign dignitaries and has experience consulting and repairing domestic troubles, creating oh, say 22 million new jobs... And a candidate that could unite the democratic party instead of splintering it into a million pieces.

    If only. If only...
    • ^
    • v
    Germans should pay more attention to eheir own affairs.

    I hope Obama sticks to his guns and does things his way. Obama must do this, Obama must be that, at home and abroad.
    I'm really sick of it, particualrly because most of the advice is so bad.
    They don't listen to him when he speaks and insist he speak about things he can't predict.

    What nonsense.
    • ^
    • v
    Runasim

    Its going to be a loooooonnnnngggggg 4 years for you. In post after post you reveal how sick you are of what people are saying about Obama and hes not even been elected yet.

    If Obama slips to the right he is going to be getting the same treatment that they just gave Clinton and our former ex president Bill Clinton. That made the treatment they gave Bush look Mild and CLINTON was ONE OF THEIR OWN.
 
close Reblog this comment
Powered by Disqus · Learn more
blog comments powered by Disqus

« Obama and McCain: the necessity of rebuilding the nation
Georgia Supreme Court weighing mandatory sentence imposed on sex offender »


By posting comments on The Moderate Voice you are acknowledging and agreeing to the following general comments policy:

(1) The Moderate Voice's comments are hosted by Disqus (http://disqus.com). If your comment doesn't appear immediately, please be patient since it is an off-site system.

(2) All e-mail received from readers by The Moderate Voice is considered intended for publication unless otherwise indicated in the initial message from the writer. Please do not send us attachments unless you contact us and we agree to it.

(3)The Moderate Voice reserves the right to edit all e-mail and posted comments for content, clarity, and length.

(4) Our comment space is reserved for comments that relate to a post's topic. You should not reprint lengthy text from your own works or those of others, including news articles. You MAY link to them.

(5) Comments that are abusive, offensive, contain profane or racist material or violate the terms of service for this blog's host provider will be removed and the author(s) banned from future comments. Such comments also violate the very SPIRIT of this site -- which was created to encourage thoughtful and vigorous discussion among readers who may share differing viewpoints.

(6) All points of view are welcome on The Moderate Voice, with the following exceptions:

(a) Comments posted several times a day with the intent of dominating, re-directing or hijacking the thread by turning a discussion into the equivalent of a bitter shouting match.

(b) Comments posted several times a day that insult or call other commenters or blog writers names or repeatedly make the same point with the effect of or clear intent to annoy other commenters or blog writers.

(7) Name-calling, personal attacks, racist comments or use of profanity by any commenter, whether they are by persons who agree or disagree with the views expressed by The Moderate Voice will NOT be tolerated and will result in the deletion of the comment and the banning of the commenter's ISP address, without notice. In some cases a comment may be deleted and the writer will be given another chance. Commenters who virtually ASK The Moderate Voice to ban them by ignoring any warnings or daring TMV to ban them will quickly get their wish.

(8) Anonymous commenters should identify themselves with the same moniker, so readers know their comments are coming from a single individual. If they don't, they are subject to a banning.

(9)If we have problems with inappropriate or inflammatory comments from a commenter who it turns out gave a fake email address that person is subject to immediate banning.

(10) Quotes from material appearing on The Moderate Voice with attribution are allowed. Reprints are allowed only by permission from The Moderate Voice. You may request permission by e-mail.

(11) The Moderate Voice is a personal site. It is not the Government. It is NOT aligned with any political party. It is NOT promoting any specific candidate for office. It is not a public institution or a media organization. It is not a neutral site. It is intended to express and disseminate the authors' varying points of views. Writers on this weblog WILL take positions. It reserves the right to limit comments to those that, in its view, comport with its stated comment policy. Comments that do not comply are subject to deletion and banning of the author's ISP.

Disclaimer:

--Reading and posting comments at The Moderate Voice constitutes acknowledgment of and agreement to the terms outlined in this comment policy. This comment policy may be revised in part or in full at any time.

--All comments must comport with applicable state and federal laws. The Moderate Voice has no obigation to monitor, edit, censor, or take responsibility for comments. It may or may not act upon a violation of its comment policy once a suspected violation has been brought to its attention. Therefore, commenters are solely responsible for the content of their comments and should ensure that that their comments are lawful and fall within the stated guidelines of both The Moderate Voice and its hosting company.

--The Moderate Voice is not be responsible for injury or liability to any reader or commenter resulting from its own communications or those of commenters, that may be offensive, misleading, inaccurate, illegal, or otherwise unsuitable in the view of the reader. Readers and commenters further agree to indemnify and hold harmless The Moderate Voice from claims resulting from the use of any material appearing on The Moderate Voice which damages the reader, commenter or any other party.

--The Moderate Voice is not responsible for and might disagree with material posted in the comments section. While we strive for accuracy in our posts and DO correct errors, material posted by The Moderate Voice in its posts -- or those left by others in the comments section -- may or may not be accurate.

Read and Post at your own risk.