At Last, Obama and Putin Meet

by Holly Bailey - July 7th, 2009 - The Gaggle



Putin: What's That On the Floor?

Today’s meeting was the first time Obama and Putin had ever met. Upon arrival, Putin met Obama outside for a quick handshake, before they headed upstairs to an ornate living room, where they briefly spoke to reporters. The initial meeting was cordial, but in your Gaggler’s view, it seemed a little awkward. Speaking through an interpreter, Putin talked first, welcoming Obama to his compound. He spoke of days when ties between the U.S. and Russia “flourished” but acknowledged periods of “grayish moods” between the two. “With you, we link all our hopes for furtherance of relations between our two countries,” Putin told Obama. It was incredibly upbeat language for Putin, but his body language was another story. Although Obama sat looking at him intently, Putin, from your Gaggler’s viewpoint, rarely made eye contact with POTUS. The Russian PM sat slumped in his chair, eyes to the ground virtually the whole time. So much for warm relations.

Someone like Putin is not going to be impressed with someone he does not respect, and it is clear he does not respect Obama.The New York Post article, "Desperate Deal" describes just how bad Obama came off in the exchange.

Moscow knows we aren't going to start a nuclear war with Russia. Putin (forget poor "President" Dmitry Medvedev) wants to gut our conventional capabilities to stage globe-spanning military operations. He wants to cut us down to Russia's size.

Our problem is that many nuclear-delivery systems -- such as bombers or subs -- are "dual-use": A B-2 bomber can launch nukes, but it's employed more frequently to deliver conventional ordnance.

Putin sought to cripple our ability to respond to international crises. Obama, meanwhile, was out for "deliverables" -- deals that could be signed in front of the cameras. Each man got what he wanted.

However what Obama got is not in the interest of our nation. It is, to the contrary, in the interest of weakening our nation. If that is what Obama wants (and many feel it is) then Obama may be a lot happier with his deal than our troops who will be severely handicapped in protecting us from harm.