why the diss on brown?
By American Girl in Italy on March 6, 2009 at 7:40 PM in Barack Obama, Current Affairs, Michelle Obama, United Kingdom
I have been working on this story, gathering information about Obama and his apparent diss of Gordon Brown’s visit the other day. I wondered if Obama’s diss on England and Gordon Brown had something to do with Kenya, but I didn’t know why, exactly. In my search for information, and answers, I came across one bloggers explanation. But, let me back up a bit, first.
It was reported a couple of weeks ago that Obama had sent back the Winston Churchill bust that Tony Blair lent to George Bush after 9/11. Obama sent it back upon entering the White House.
“A bust of the former prime minister once voted the greatest Briton in history, which was loaned to George W Bush from the Government’s art collection after the September 11 attacks, has now been formally handed back.
The bronze by Sir Jacob Epstein, worth hundreds of thousands of pounds if it were ever sold on the open market, enjoyed pride of place in the Oval Office during President Bush’s tenure.
But when British officials offered to let Mr Obama to hang onto the bust for a further four years, the White House said: “Thanks, but no thanks.”
This left many in England curious as to what this meant for relationships between US and UK. The bust is now floating around, somewhere in limbo, waiting to find a new home.
Next, it was reported that Obama would not be granting a full press conference with Brown, even though Brown had thought otherwise. The White House issued a statement, as Brown’s plane was touching down in DC, that is was cancelled, due to snow.
“The murmurs began when President Obama returned to the British Embassy the Winston Churchill bust that had been displayed in the Oval Office since Tony Blair lent it to George W. Bush.
The fears intensified when press secretary Robert Gibbs, announcing British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s visit to the White House, demoted the Churchillian phrase “special relationship” to a mere “special partnership” across the Atlantic.
And the alarm bells really went off when Brown’s entourage landed at Andrews Air Force Base on Monday night. Obama, breaking with precedent, wouldn’t grant the prime minister the customary honor of standing beside him in front of the two nations’ flags for the TV cameras. The Camp David sleepover that Blair got on his first meeting with Bush? Sorry, chaps.
snip
But not this time. Benedict Brogan of Britain’s Daily Mail reported on his blog that “the joint press conference No10 was banking on is off. . . . Embarrassing.” He later updated the report: “If Downing Street was expecting the kind of love-in that marked the first Blair-Clinton gala at the White House or the Blair-Bush Colgate and video moment at Camp David, this new administration has proved it wrong. There never was going to be a press conference, despite what No10 said. And there is no couple time planned. No Stevie Wonder, no Meet the Parents, no burgers.”
snip
“There was a lackluster quality to it all that did little to assuage the fears,” agreed Tim Shipman of Britain’s Telegraph.
Somewhere in the British Embassy, a bronze bust of Churchill was turning in its storage crate.”
Ouch
Then I came across this article: President Barack Obama just plain rude to Britain. Don’t call us in future.
“Why couldn’t President Obama have put on more of a show for his British guests? He looked like he simply couldn’t be bothered.
snip
But Obama’s merely warmish words (one of our closest allies, said with little sincerity or passion) left a bitter taste with this Atlanticist. Especially after his team had made Number 10 beg for a mini press conference and then not even offered the PM lunch.
We get the point, sunshine: we’re just one of many allies and you want fancy new friends. Well, the next time you need something doing, something which impinges on your national security, then try calling the French, or the Japanese, or best of all the Germans. The French will be able to offer you first rate support from their catering corps but beyond that you’ll be on your own.
When it comes to men, munitions and commitment you’ll soon find out why it pays to at least treat the Brits with some manners.”
Double ouch.
I have not forgotten how the UK reached out to America after 9/11, and how Tony Blair offered us their full support. They stood by us, went to war with us, cried for us, and died for us.
I am offended and embarrassed that the current administration snubbed our ally.
And adding insult to injury, the Obama’s displayed a complete lack of etiquette, hospitality and consideration through their last minute lame attempts at gift giving.
“Like all good guests, Sarah Brown arrived bearing gifts for the children, Malia and Sasha. And they were really nice presents. A bit of thought had clearly gone into choosing them: Top Shop dresses (with matching necklaces) and a selection of books by British authors. Lovely.
In return Mrs. Obama gave the Brown children, Fraser and John, two toy models of Marine One, the Presidential helicopter. Fair enough on the helicopter part, always a popular choice with small boys; but Marine One? It’s not as though anyone needs reminding that Barack Obama is President or that he has his own helicopter. Short of giving the boys Action Man models of her own husband smiting the evil forces of neo-conservatism, Mrs. Obama’s gesture could not have been more solipsistic or more inherently dismissive of Mrs. Brown.
Not only did she demonstrate that she spent approximately three seconds contemplating the needs of the Brown boys (having an aide pop to the White House gift shop for a piece of merchandising does not imply a great deal of thought), she appeared to show a most uncharacteristic lapse of judgment. It might have been possible to overlook the incident were it not for the official photograph.
The White House released one picture of the two women and it does not appear to have been selected with any kind of special relationship in mind. There is a menacing bunch of pink peonies in the foreground and the angle is most unflattering to Mrs. Brown, who has the air of a woman very much in need of a stiff drink.”
No doubt the Brown’s personal assistant informed Mrs. Obama’s assistant of the gifts, and she ran to the gift store to scrape up something for the Brown’s. This is the equivalent, in my book, of running to your kitchen and grabbing a bag of spaghetti when an unexpected guest shows up at your door. Not grabbing the spaghetti, a colander, a jar of your favorite sauce, a new dish towel, and a fresh loaf of bread, and creating a fabulous gift basket, but grabbing a cheesy bag of spag. Except the Brown’s weren’t unexpected guests. And they had at least six hours of lead time, as the Brown’s crossed the Atlantic. Do you know what kind of gifts I could have whipped up in six hours?!
If they were that inconsiderate to prepare thoughtful gifts ahead of time, could they have at least grabbed a bunch of toys and gifts for the kids, and put together a nice gift pack? They have the whole White House gift store at their disposal…. they best they could come up with was a cheesy $15 Marine One Helicopter?
And same goes for Gordon and Sarah. Did you hear what Gordon Brown brought for Obama?
“Mr Brown’s gifts included an ornamental desk pen holder made from the oak timbers of Victorian anti-slaver HMS Gannet, once named HMS President.
Mr Obama was so delighted he has already put it in pride of place in the Oval Office on the Resolute desk which was carved from timbers of Gannet’s sister ship, HMS Resolute.
Another treasure given to the U.S. President was the framed commission for HMS Resolute, a vessel that came to symbolise Anglo-US peace when it was saved from ice packs by Americans and given to Queen Victoria.
Finally, Mr Brown gave a first edition set of the seven-volume classic biography of Churchill by Sir Martin Gilbert.”
Now, those are amazingly thoughtful and considerate gifts! And what did Obama give Brown?
“Gordon Brown has been given a collection of 25 classic American films on DVD as his official gift from Barack Obama.” I’m so friggin embarrassed. And to make matters worse, I bet Brown can’t even play the DVD’s. Do you think Obama bothered to check in which region the DVDs are formatted? Of all the things they could have scraped up in the Gift Shop, that was the best they could do?
How could they fail by such epic proportions here?
Anyway, this brings me back to wondering if this had anything to do with Kenya. According to the opinion of Baldilocks, a Lau American, it does indeed.
“If you recall, before Kenya became Kenya (1963) it was a British colony known as British East Africa. Between 1952 and 1960, there was this little “difference of opinion” between the UK and the natives of British East Africa—primarily from the Kikuyu tribe. That conflict is known as the Mau Mau Uprising. There were tens of thousands of African civilians killed and, according to Wiki, seven to ten thousand Africans interned by the British colonial masters. In Dreams from My Father, President Obama says that his grandfather was tortured by the British during the conflict, though he was not a Kikuyu but a Luo. Guess which prime minister ordered the Mau Mau insurgency to be put down.
Mystery solved. It seems that the president is seeking to humiliate the progeny of those who humiliated his ancestors. Revenge isn’t that complicated a motive.
However, a question remains. Is this any way for a President of the United States to behave?”
Doesn’t the President of the United States swear to protect, preserve and defend the Constitution of the United States, not engage in personal politics? Is he acting in the best interests of the US? Is he right, or wrong here? I don’t think this is any way for the POTUS to behave.
And I would just like to add that I have not forgotten the outpouring of support, and the sacrifices that England made for us, after 9/11. And as far as this American is concerned, they are still a valued ally.
Obama is set to meet the Queen next month. I wonder what he plans on bring her? A White House mouse pad? Or maybe a White House baseball cap…she does wear hats, after all. While there, the Brown’s will be hostinig them for a dinner party at their home on Downing Street. I hope they serve beenie weenies.
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