The President’s UN Iraq gaffe: why doesn’t Obama show pride in America?

UK Telegraph  "To compare a Baathist dictatorship with the most powerful democracy in the world is an astonishing gaffe for a US president to make in a speech, not least one watched by tens of millions of people across the world. It is like a post-war US president drawing an analogy between Nazi rule and the Allied occupation of post-war Germany.
"This should have been a powerful moment to honor and pay tribute to the huge sacrifice made by over 4,000 American servicemen and women who laid down their lives in Iraq, but the president simply could not bring himself to do it."

Also from the Telegraph:  Why the US conservative revolution could save the Special Relationship
"As I wrote back in July 2008 on the pages of The Sunday Telegraph:

Britain’s chattering classes should be careful what they wish for. Senator Obama promises change and a bold new course for the United States. The end result may be an America that looks away from Britain and erects higher barriers to trade and investment.

The special relationship has lasted over 60 years as the most powerful and successful partnership of modern times. Unfortunately it might not survive the next presidential election."

Nile Gardiner is a Washington-based foreign affairs analyst and political commentator.

White House Amateur Hour Again "The American media won't tell ever tell the public, but many overseas leaders of important countries regard the Obama administration as a joke. His lack of preparation for the job of president is patently obvious, his lack of a work ethic is demonstrated for all to see by his frequent vacations and hectic schedule of parties at the White House, and his naiveté in dealing with foreign tyrants like the madman Ahmedinejad is frightening."