Obama: America A Superpower 'Whether We Like It or Not'

[parishioner]

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010...perpower-like/

Being a superpower ain't all that, at least according to President Obama.

In a little-noticed remark at the close of the two-day nuclear security summit in Washington, D.C., this week, President Obama suggested the United States is somehow burdened by its military might -- a comment that drew a stern rebuke from his former rival in the presidential campaign.

Obama was responding to a question Tuesday about how the summit would play into peace-making efforts in the Middle East
when he addressed the downsides of -- by virtue of America's world stature -- being obligated to intervene in international conflicts.

"It is a vital national security interest of the United States to reduce these conflicts because whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower, and when conflicts break out, one way or another we get pulled into them," Obama said. "And that ends up costing us significantly in terms of both blood and treasure."

The remark got little attention in mainstream coverage of the summit, but was picked up on several conservative blogs, which panned the president for suggesting Americans had grown weary of superpower status.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., slammed the leader of the free world Thursday, calling the remark a "direct contradiction to everything America believes in."

"That's one of the more incredible statements I've ever heard a president of the United States make in modern times," McCain, a Vietnam veteran and former prisoner of war, told Fox News. "We are the dominant superpower, and we're the greatest force for good in the history
of this country, and I thank God every day that we are a dominant superpower."

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

It is better to be a superpower than to be super powered by someone else.

[bkb0000]

Americans get "sucked into" world affairs because the Federal government flips the switch on the vacuum. it's ****ing with the rest of the world that makes us a super power- so obama's words are not incorrect, they just omit some important information.

[montanadave]

McCain's a douchebag. He's scared shitless he's gonna get primary'd be some tea bagger so he's backing over himself on every moderate position he's ever supported and looking to attack President Obama at every opportunity, real or imagined, to ingratiate himself to the uber-conservatives.

"I never considered myself a maverick." Say what?

Obama's comment is accurate. Sometimes being the sole remaining superpower means having to stick your nose in shit that you'd just as soon walk away from, simply because there's nobody else willing or able to step up to the plate.

[parishioner]

McCain's a douchebag. He's scared shitless he's gonna get primary'd be some tea bagger so he's backing over himself on every moderate position he's ever supported and looking to attack President Obama at every opportunity, real or imagined, to ingratiate himself to the uber-conservatives.

"I never considered myself a maverick." Say what?

Obama's comment is accurate. Sometimes being the sole remaining superpower means having to stick your nose in shit that you'd just as soon walk away from, simply because there's nobody else willing or able to step up to the plate.

Being a superpower does bear more responsibility so ,yes, it is an accurate statement. However, it makes you wonder why he said "whether we like it or not" when referring to being a superpower. WTF is he trying to say? That he doesn't like that fact that we are a superpower and would rather not have the burden and responsibility that comes with being one? It's just a little snide remark that hints toward how he probably really feels. That statement could have been made without saying "whether we like it or not". It serves no purpose except to add more negativity.

ETA: I don't care for McCain either. I appreciate his service but sadly he is a RINO.

[montanadave]

Like I said, sometimes the United States, by virtue of our position as the world's sole superpower, is required to intervene when many would prefer to look the other way, whether we like it or not.

Noblesse oblige.

This labored parsing of the President's words is nothing more than a tortured attempt to foment controversy where none exists.

[ST911]

.....

[nismo1013]

sheesh.

[civilian]

I believe what the President was trying to say is that whether we like it or not, if there is a conflict somewhere (major or not), as a superpower we are likely to be pulled into it, a statement that has been made many times by many previous presidents, albeit more clearly. Would find it hard to believe that a sitting President of the United States would essentially go out and say, "I wanna be the President of an underpowered country..." A commentator on Fox news echoed my understanding of the President's statement, which must mean it's true

[parishioner]

Would find it hard to believe that a sitting President of the United States would essentially go out and say, "I wanna be the President of an underpowered country..."

I understand fully what he is trying to say and he is not wrong. Idk, maybe if he wouldn't bow down before other world leaders and go on international apology tours it wouldn't be as significant. If your trying to be the President of the most powerful country in the world, I'm not saying you have to be the big bully on the block, but you sure as shit don't go around kissing ass and trying to appease.