Today was an incredible day in Paris:
The French Interior Ministry said the rally for unity against terrorism is the largest demonstration in France’s history.
Calling the rally “unprecedented,” the ministry said the demonstrators are so numerous they spread beyond the official march route, making them impossible to count.
French media estimate up to 3.7 million are taking part, more than the numbers who took to Paris streets when the Allies liberated the city from the Nazis in World War II.
More than 40 world leaders joined French President Francois Hollande in the march, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and Jordan’s King Abdullah.
So what about President Obama? Meh, too far to travel for something other than a vacation or a round of golf. No Biden either, which is probably just as well; too much risk of embarrassing the US. A prominent member of the cabinet, perhaps? Well, that could easily have happened, but …
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is in Paris this week to attend a meeting on fighting terrorism, but did not participate in the march.
Apparently, the only representative of the United States government was Ambassador to France Jane Hartley. She probably didn’t have far to go; the US embassy is near Place de la Concorde, which I’m guessing was on the march route.
Hartley is the perfect person to represent the Obama administration at such an event. Like most of Obama’s ambassadorial appointments, she has zero foreign policy experience, but was a major “bundler” of campaign contributions in both 2008 and 2012. Besides, having a higher-ranking administration official represent the US might give people the mistaken impression that this administration considers opposition to terrorism important. Or, Allah forbid, that it sees jihad as a threat.
SMDH.
