Elephant in the Room Overwhelmed

Author: Stefan Claypool

One of the Obama campaign's big selling points was that it was going to restore America's international standing - it was going to reach out to the world powers that had been snubbed by the Cowboy Bush regime and reclaim the diplomatic high ground by shaking hands with our enemies and hugging our allies.

So far, not so good.

I'm no fan of Gordon Brown or his British Labour Party, but it's tough not to feel for him after the treatment he got from President Obama last week. Journeying to the United States for his first diplomatic visit to Obama's White House, Mr. Brown found himself denied the joint press appearance usually offered to individuals of his stature, ostensibly because of "bad weather." Apparently, moving the event indoors from the Rose Garden would have been impossible.

More tellingly, Brown went to great lengths to provide a suitable welcome gift for the new president. According to Daily Mail, Brown gave to Obama "an ornamental pen holder made from the timbers of the Victorian anti-slave ship HMS Gannet. This unique present delighted Mr. Obama because oak from the Gannet's sister ship, HMS Resolute, was carved to make a desk that has sat in the Oval Office in the White House since 1880." In return, Obama gave Brown 25 DVDs and a couple of plastic miniatures of Marine One for his kids.

Hmm.

Look, I love cinema, and if President Obama wanted to buy me DVDs, that'd be great. However, I am also not the prime minister of our nation's closest ally, and consequently, I have lower standards. (BTW, were the DVDs in NTSC or PAL format?)

By all accounts, Brown was understandably not enthused by the gift he received. Why does this matter? Because it says one of two things about the way the Obama presidency is operating. The first is that Obama is actually trying to marginalize our allies. This could all very well be Obama saying that he does not value Brown or his country highly enough to make the effort. If this is true, it would be diplomatically disastrous.

Of course, this is hardly the image Team Obama wants, and so their story, and the second possibility, is that Obama can't handle the pressure.

According to Britain's The Telegraph, "Barack Obama's offhand approach to Gordon Brown's Washington visit last week came about because the President was facing exhaustion over America's economic crisis and is unable to focus on foreign affairs." Citing anonymous White House insiders, The Telegraph writes that "Allies of Mr. Obama say his weary appearance in the Oval Office with Mr. Brown illustrates the strain he is now under, and the President's surprise at the sheer volume of business that crosses his desk."

No one's going to make the claim that the president's job is an easy one, and perhaps Obama can be forgiven for focusing more on domestic issues than foreign policy, given the current economic crisis. But for the White House to try and pass off the snubbing of an extremely important ally by claiming that the president is too tired and that he wasn't prepared for the amount of work he'd have is indicative of a larger problem. For all his flaws, you never heard George Bush complain that the job was just too much for him. In fact, I can't remember any president in recent memory making such a claim. The fact that Obama would even consider such a statement shows the extent to which he is floundering.

Simply put, Barack Obama is in over his head. Worse, he's showing it. It's time for the president to get his White House in order - if he can.