More On The Bush Administration's Opposition To Obama Speaking At Brandenburg Gate
By Greg Sargent - July 11, 2008, 10:37AM
Yesterday I noted that Germany's Der Spiegel had reported that the Bush administration was privately trying to block Barack Obama from making a speech at Berlin's historic Brandenburg Gate.
Now Der Spiegel has more, citing another German report that actually has an American official on the record shedding light on what might really be going on here:
The German government, however, is more concerned with other possible side-effects of the speech. An overly warm welcome for Obama could anger the Republican candidate, John McCain, as it would not exactly be a good starting point should McCain be elected this autumn. Furthermore, any indication that Berlin is over-eager to see the end of the Bush administration is not likely to play well in Washington.
Indeed, Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt told the mass circulation tabloid Bild that "it would be nice if the German government would focus on strengthening its contacts to us rather than already beginning to look for our successors."
This American official is openly letting his hostility to the idea be known. Meanwhile, Ben Smith reports that his German-speaking readers have found reports in the German press saying that an American official "berated" a German official about the speech idea.
This definitely warrants some follow-up reporting.