White House: Bow? What bow?
Apr 9th, 2009 by Rick Arms
I really wasn’t going to write about this again, mostly because I was convinced that the national media had let Barack Obama off the hook completely for his tradition- and protocol-breaking bow to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. However, Ben Smith reports that the White House has now been asked about it, thanks to a Washington Times editorial scolding Obama for the move — and that they’re denying it ever happened:
The White House is denying that the president bowed to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia at a G-20 meeting in London, a scene that drew criticism on the right and praise from some Arab outlets.
“It wasn’t a bow. He grasped his hand with two hands, and he’s taller than King Abdullah,” said an Obama aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The Washington Times called it the alleged bow a “shocking display of fealty to a foreign potentate,” and said it violated centuries of American tradition of not deferring to royalty. The Weekly Standard, meanwhile, noted, that American protocol apparently rules out bowing, or at least it reportedly did on the occasion of a Clinton “near bow” to the Emperor of Japan.
Interestingly, a columnist in the Saudi-backed Arabic paper Asharq Alawsat also took the gesture as a bow, and appreciated the move.
No bow? You tell me. Obama’s a lot taller than Queen Elizabeth, too, so compare the two greetings for yourself:
Originally, the excuse that had gotten floated around the media was that Obama was picking something off the floor. This video pretty much destroys that excuse:
Note also that this shows clearly that Obama did not “grasp [Abdullah's] hand with both hands”; Obama’s left hand is in plain view, on his left leg, as he executes the deep-waisted bow.
Will the media finally report this, as Ben Smith did, now that the White House is trying to deny the obvious and rewrite history? Or will they continue to sit silently while Obama tinkles on their heads and calls it rain? (also thanks to HA reader Geoff A)
He was being friendly like w.
I am surprised his hollowness didn’t curtsy.
If Obama hadn’t basically bowed into the king’s crotch, his excuse might make some sense.
“Obama’s White House is flat out LYING”?
Actually, I just heard someone explain it… It wasn’t a lie. The White House is batting the question…
The bow was okay.
It was just a little over the top when he fell to the floor, licked his feet and said, “My precioussssss!”
Hey…little girl…yeah, YOU.
Let me fill you in.
I work in construction.
Normally, in construction, people just work, and they rarely talk politics. Need to get ‘er done…you know?
But something happened the other day that has them talking and they are angry.
Know what it is?
The Presidential Prostration.
You can cry all you want. Won’t change what happened.
Do not touch that dial, we are in control of your television set…
We are in control of your perceptions of reality…
We are in control of truth…
for you have entered, the ObamaZone.
Looking at the bright side, maybe we should consider ourselves lucky that Obama wasn’t facing the other direction when he bent over for the king.
He was just trying to loosen up a stiff back.
He was just singing I’m a Little Teapot to the King.
He was just admiring the Kings fancy silk slippers with the pointy, curled toes.
He was just looking for his teleprompter to see what to say.
Ummm, yeah, it was one of those.
O is tinkling on America.
Obama, the President of the United States and leader of the free world, bows to a Saudi King who represents a despotic regime noted for its’ human rights violations, a birthplace of terrorists, a symbol of everything that is an antithesis to our system of government, and it’s no big deal?
I consider myself fortunate to have been born in a republic. I appreciate that as a citizen of a republic, I need not bow to any man or woman. We are all created equal, and blood lines do not make one person superior. This gesture by Obama should rankle every citizen for when Obama bowed as President of the United States, we all bowed.
He did bow, see the video from the latest angle:
http://tinyurl.com/obamabowedtowow