President Barack Obama didn’t intend to signal any change in the U.S.-Egypt relationship last night when he said Egypt is not an “ally,” the White House told The Cable today.
In an interview with Telemundo Wednesday night, Obama said that the U.S. relationship with the new Egyptian government was a “work in progress,” and emphasized that the United States is counting on the government of Egypt to better protect the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, which was attacked by protesters on Sept. 11.
“I don’t think that we would consider them an ally, but we don’t consider them an enemy,” Obama said. “They’re a new government that is trying to find its way. They were democratically elected. I think that we are going to have to see how they respond to this incident.”
That comment had Egypt watchers scratching their heads, especially since technically, Egypt was designated as a Major Non-NATO Ally in 1989 when Congress first passed the law creating that status, which gives them special privileges in cooperating with the United States, especially in the security and technology areanas.
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor told The Cable Thursday that the administration is not signaling a change in that status.
“I think folks are reading way too much into this,” Vietor said.
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4 Responses
In other words, O’Bumble put his foot in it in a major way, and is now trying desperately to backtrack. And yet somehow he has better credibility on foreign policy than Romney?! Somehow Romney’s words on the poor security arrangements in London were a gaffe, but 0bama announcing that Egypt is no longer an ally should be ignored?! What kind of idiots would accept that?
We really are reading to much into it.
You see unlike Romney who just talks without thinking as President Obama so eloquently put it. Mr. Obama thinks carefully before he talks.
However since he thinks so carefully we must realize that his words mean nothing and should not be read into for one who is always thinking is always evolving and he his words may evolve to something else entirely by the time they are read into.
I hope our non ally uses those 3billion $$, hard earned tax paying american dollars we gave them to do something bedides buy weapons and arm citizens to attack our embassy
2. When did romney talk without thinking? Are you referring to the attacks on the embassies? If so, how long does Romney have to wait for your idiot in chief to respond to the MURDERS there?? OblamO should be ashamed of himself for being out to lunch and then running off to a campaign trip in Vegas. We need a leader and OblamO is NOT a leader. He has no intention of leading – only to follow.