Wasn't Obama brilliant in Copenhagen?

[Onlooker]

You all probably read this:

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/thegaggle/

Late in the afternoon on Friday with the clock ticking down to zero, a rather dramatic scene unfolded that surprised even several top leaders at the climate negotiations in Copenhagen. In a secret meeting between Chinese, Indian, and Brazilian heads of state, the door swung open revealing President Obama, who hadn’t been invited but had arrived to crash the meeting. Several diplomats protested the intrusion, but Obama simply informed them he wouldn’t accept them negotiating in secret. He sat down and started talking.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=9379026

The U.N. climate conference narrowly escaped collapse Saturday as bitterly divided delegates agreed after all-night talks to recognize a political compromise that President Barack Obama brokered with China and other emerging powers.

It's so rare there is such direct cause and effect with statesmanship. Copenhagen looked like it was going to collapse in disarray. It became so serious that people called in Obama. Enter Obama who bravely and apparently aggressively engaged other nations, and pushed through an agreement that at least moves the issue forward and gives the delegates another year to come up with something better. Progress between all nations is extremely difficult, but Obama demonstrated an amazing ability to get that done. This gives me renewed confidence that when he engages the Senate and House in negotiating health care reform, the bill will move to the left, even if reconciliation becomes necessary.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. You said something positive about Obama. Let the dogpiling begin...

:popcorn:

[Deja Q]

11. LOl

True.

I need some lithium; I feel unbalanced and teeter-totter each way...

[atreides1]

2. Just Great

Too bad he din't crash the Senate Democrats party when Lieberman was getting blown by the rest of the caucus, with a few exceptions!!!

[MissDeeds]

13. +1

:rofl:

[YOY]

3. We all know he's a great speaker and good at getting what he wants.

It's just always a question of how that will be good for the rest of us.

[IndianaGreen]

4. I'll let you read how brilliant Obama really was

The day's most remarkable feature was a direct and unprecedented personal clash between the US President, Barack Obama, and the Chinese Premier, Wen Jiabao, in which Mr Wen took deep offence at Mr Obama's insistence – in public – that the Chinese should allow their promised cuts in greenhouse gases to be internationally verified. When the President, in an unyielding speech, said that without international verification "any agreement would be empty words on a page", that was too much for Mr Wen. He left the conference in Copenhagen's Bella Centre, returned to his hotel in the city, and responded with a direct snub of his own – he sent low-level delegates to take his place in the talks.

A high-level source told The Independent that the US President was amazed when he found who he was negotiating with, and clearly regarded Mr Wen's absence as a major diplomatic insult. He snapped: "It would be nice to negotiate with somebody who can make political decisions" although last night urgent diplomatic efforts were underway to try to bring the two leaders face to face for a second round of talks, to patch up the disagreement.

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/obamas-climate-accord-fails-the-test-1845090.html

[ellie]

7. Clearly this failure

on the part of the Chinese is Obama's fault, right? I mean, Obama should be able to control the temper tantrums of everyone around him and failing to do so makes him a failure, right?

[msongs]

9. they've been on the phone with Lieberman to see how he runs the government lol nt

[katandmoon]

10. Too bad he's not as tough on Joe Lieberman!

[ellie]

5. Yes! He really was brilliant

[saltpoint]

6. I like film. This would have been a very effective scene in a movie

about power and influence with high-stakes global import.

Then to realize it actually occurred in real time.

Good for Barack Obama. Let those other furtively gathered folks deal with a true heart-and-mind leader.

Good politics, good vision, good man.

[TwilightGardener]

8. That's pretty cool.

[dkf]

12. Sigh...just sigh.

[GreenArrow]

14. Cowboy diplomacy!

Yee Haw!