Downing St left embarrassed after President Obama scales down first meeting with Brown

Oh that Obama, what a card,

Must have been to much conga dancing and cocktails at the Whitehouse saloon.

www.dailymail.co.uk...

Downing Street was left scrambling to avoid a diplomatic embarrassment today after the White House ruled out a formal press conference to mark Gordon Brown's first formal meeting with Barack Obama.

Officials denied the Prime Minister was being snubbed after it emerged that the new president would not make himself available for the traditional joint appearance before the White House media.

Mr Brown's aides are trying to make the best of what is a distinctly low key visit compared to the family hospitality lavished on Tony Blair by George Bush when they met for the first time.

Obama is used to doing less then nothing, how much more can he take before he breaks?

Downing Street stressed the 'intimacy' of the formal setting in the President's office, but behind the scenes acknowledged that it was getting used to a new administration that does not appear to have time to spare for diplomatic gestures.

No doubt

After overnight protests from British diplomats, the White House agreed to allow journalists into the Oval Office later for a brief round questions with Mr Obama and Mr Brown after their talks.

And why not allow the press, pray tell?

The "tweet" from 10 Downing Street on Twitter this a.m. declared the visit a great success, and emphasized Obama's words about a special and enduring relationship between the two countries.

Obama is new in office and maybe isn't fully versed in diplomatic manuevers. I think it's also likely that Obama has decided to limit the number of press conferences and photo ops he gives in order to get some actual work done. The press would take up all of his time if they could.

I'm not a professional diplomat, but I can see only a very good relationship between Britain and the U.S. IMO the Daily Mail may be looking for ways to put the prime minister down and is making a big to do out of what is only, at worst, a breach of etiquette.

I have never seen a president hit the ground running as fast as Obama has since the inauguration. It puzzles me how anyone can say he's doing "nothing."

[edit on 3-3-2009 by Sestias]

reply to post by Sestias


Depends on what they want to talk about. If he does something, then he's doing too much and it's wrong. If he does nothing, then he's not doing enough and it's wrong.

He can't win in these people's eyes, and they determined that before he was elected. The ultra-conservatives and the cry-me-a-river-Ron Paul fans need to just sit back, shut up, and wait for results before they start crying bloody murder.

Originally posted by Sestias
The "tweet" from 10 Downing Street on Twitter this a.m. declared the visit a great success, and emphasized Obama's words about a special and enduring relationship between the two countries.

Obama is new in office and maybe isn't fully versed in diplomatic manuevers. I think it's also likely that Obama has decided to limit the number of press conferences and photo ops he gives in order to get some actual work done. The press would take up all of his time if they could.

I'm not a professional diplomat, but I can see only a very good relationship between Britain and the U.S. IMO the Daily Mail may be looking for ways to put the prime minister down and is making a big to do out of what is only, at worst, a breach of etiquette.

I have never seen a president hit the ground running as fast as Obama has since the inauguration. It puzzles me how anyone can say he's doing "nothing."

[edit on 3-3-2009 by Sestias]

I don't think anyone is saying he isn't doing anything. They just don't like what he has done so far, which is fair. I agree that it is really a non issue to us. To the UK, who think highly of etiquette, this is probably a big deal.

As far as cutting down on press confrences to concentrate on real work. I hope this is true, everytime he goes on television the stock market plummets and we find out that we are spending more money.

This is why partisanship is working it's way to the fringes of society where it belongs. No one can talk policy anymore. They'll argue to the death about something stupid like this instead of reading the latest Justice Department Memo, or reviewing House Appropriations committee files. No one studies macroeconomics and how history has actually played out outside of political dogma. No body goes to the Fed website to crunch their data and compare it to reality. Everyone is looking for malfeasance in the wrong places. And while you waste your efforts with crap like this, with the stroke of a pen your rights have changed. All because you were busy having an unintelligent discussion about nonsensical things.

reply to post by projectvxn


Well that is all relative. Most people can't do that. For instance, I have a basic understanding of economies, some accounting background, and am all around good with numbers, but I doubt I'd have the time or the energy to go crunch numbers at the Fed website.

Now compare that to the average citizen, who isn't educated in those fields, works long hours for short pay, and just wants someone to give them a break. Most people can't do those things, and it seems the media has noticed they can get away with reported now real news.

The average American has been completely abandoned, and all the while, they are bickering about whether Obama is black, born of this country, and other superficial topics such as this one.

Of course it may be just simply that Obama has his priorities,
which involves more than a pack of smokes a day...

formal audiences take him away from 'his friends'
he'd need to spray on some Axe, toilet-water or body spray,
perhaps even gargle & eat a tic-tac or two to not carry a aura of cigarettes


habits are hard to break

Originally posted by Sestias
The "tweet" from 10 Downing Street on Twitter this a.m. declared the visit a great success, and emphasized Obama's words about a special and enduring relationship between the two countries.

Obama is new in office and maybe isn't fully versed in diplomatic manuevers. I think it's also likely that Obama has decided to limit the number of press conferences and photo ops he gives in order to get some actual work done. The press would take up all of his time if they could.

I'm not a professional diplomat, but I can see only a very good relationship between Britain and the U.S. IMO the Daily Mail may be looking for ways to put the prime minister down and is making a big to do out of what is only, at worst, a breach of etiquette.

I have never seen a president hit the ground running as fast as Obama has since the inauguration. It puzzles me how anyone can say he's doing "nothing."

[edit on 3-3-2009 by Sestias]

I think it's also likely that Obama has decided to limit the number of press conferences and photo ops he gives in order to get some actual work done. The press would take up all of his time if they could.

You really think so? I mean for awhile wasn't he having a press conference every other day?!! As for the etiquette? I can only say what etiquette? Obama has none! Unless there is a photo op of course!!

He has no desire to befriend Britain anyway! That is clear!! Bet he will treat Chavez, Ahmedinijhad, or Kim Jong Il with open arms!!

[edit on 3-3-2009 by paxnatus]

Originally posted by Sestias

I'm not a professional diplomat, but I can see only a very good relationship between Britain and the U.S.

[edit on 3-3-2009 by Sestias]

I would be inclined to agree with you if only Obama had not started off his presidency by sending the bust of Winston Churchill back to England. To the U.S. it was an afterthought, but to Londoners it was front page news.

Obama sends bust of Winston Churchill on its way back to Britain

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."

and

The rejection of the bust has left some British officials nervously reading the runes to see how much influence the UK can wield with the new regime in Washington

[edit on 3-3-2009 by sos37]

AWWWWW nOW i FEEL BAD HE WAS ALL TUCKERED OUT,

OOPS caps

I guess Hillary was right , he wont be able to handle the three AM call.

Barack Obama 'too tired' to give proper welcome to Gordon Brown
www.telegraph.co.uk...

Mr Obama rang Mr Brown as he flew home, in what many suspected was an attempt to make amends.The official dismissed any notion of the special relationship, saying: "There's nothing special about Britain. You're just the same as the other 190 countries in the world. You shouldn't expect special treatment." The apparent lack of attention to detail by the Obama administration is indicative of what many believe to be Mr Obama's determination to do too much too quickly.

ew OUCH!

The Sunday Telegraph understands that one of Mr Obama's most prominent African American backers, whose endorsement he spent two years cultivating, has told friends that he detects a weakness in Mr Obama's character.

"The one real serious flaw I see in Barack Obama is that he thinks he can manage all this," the well-known figure told a Washington official, who spoke to this newspaper. "He's underestimating the flood of things that will hit his desk." A Democratic strategist, who is friends with several senior White House aides, revealed that the president has regularly appeared worn out and drawn during evening work sessions with senior staff in the West Wing and has been forced to make decisions more quickly than he is comfortable.

He said that on several occasions the president has had to hurry back from eating dinner with his family in the residence and then tucking his daughters in to bed, to conduct urgent government business. Matters are not helped by the pledge to give up smoking.

"People say he looks tired more often than they're used to," the strategist said. "He's still calm, but there have been flashes of irritation when he thinks he's being pushed to make a decision sooner than he wants to make it. He looks like he needs a cigarette."

Do you recall Bush ever being to tired?

[edit on 073131p://bSaturday2009 by Stormdancer777]

s68.photobucket.com...

Hmmm I think this is where I leave,

more then a one line post.

www.youtube.com...

Is Obama lazy? (Updated)

Why yes I do believe I recall this same problem here at the state senate level.

www.americanthinker.com...



[edit on 093131p://bSunday2009 by Stormdancer777]

Who cares if Obama cut short his meeting with Brown. The majority of British people couldn't give a monkeys. I certainly couldn't. New Labour are a complete embarrassment to the people of Britain and they have nothing to offer the Obama administration whatsover. There's also the fact that New Labour won't be around for much longer. It's probably the main reason why Obama didn't spend much time with Brown. Brown the traitor has sold us out to a fascist Europe. The only reason Brown went to Washington was to get Obama to sign up to his Global fascist agenda.