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1.) Putin say whaaaat? — We hardly knew ye, Vladimir. TheDC’s Josh Peterson reports:
“Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a news conference Monday that if National Security Agency defense contractor Edward Snowden wants to stay in Russia, he needs to stop leaking American secrets. ‘Snowden is free to go but if he decides to stay, he has to stop his work directed to hurt our American partners,’ said Putin, adding that Russia would not be handing Snowden over to the U.S. ‘I know that this kind of statement sounds strange from me,’ Putin continued.”
The Russian strongman is either trolling America or President Obama somehow scared him. TheDC Morning is guessing the former.
2.) Obama hearts African dictator — Note to President Obama: Just because you visit a country doesn’t mean you have to praise their late dictator. TheDC’s Neil Munro reports:
“President Barack Obama toasted the founding dictator of post-colonial Tanzania on Monday, who collectivized the nation’s low-tech agricultural sector, established a one-party state and left that African nation’s economy in ruins. ‘[Y]ou might say an American child is my child. We might say a Tanzanian child is my child,’ Obama said after quoting the Tanzanian saying ‘my neighbor’s child is my child.’ ‘In this way, both of our nations will be looking after all of our children and we’ll be living out the vision of President [Julius] Nyerere,’ Obama continued. … Nyerere ‘led a one-party state that nationalized key industries and created ujamaa, a rural, collective village-based movement of ‘African socialism’ and ‘self reliance,’ according to a 2011 report by the Congressional Research Service.”
TheDC Morning isn’t a big fan of rural, collective village-based movements, but if you have to have them, you better believe we like them based on African socialism. What could go wrong?
3.) Merkel calls off Cold War — Angela Merkel is whining about America’s spy program. Alec Hill reports for TheDC:
“French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, among several other European leaders, sharply criticized the National Security Agency’s alleged practice of eavesdropping on its allies in the European Union, which the German newspaper Der Spiegel first reported on Saturday. Through her spokesman Steffan Seibert, Merkel complained that such espionage should only be used against enemies. ‘The bugging of friends is unacceptable. That cannot happen at all,’ Seibert said, according to CNN. ‘We are no longer in the Cold War.’”
Someone call Merkel a whambulance.
4.) Crazy Kerry — John Kerry seems to be America’s worst foreign policy analyst. Too bad he is also secretary of state. TheDC’s Jamie Weinstein opines:
“John Kerry may be the only adult in America outside the bubble of academia who thinks now is the right time to pursue peace between Israelis and Palestinians. He is certainly the only one in the Middle East who believes that. Since assuming his role as America’s top diplomat, the former Massachusetts senator has seemingly made Israeli-Palestinian peace his number one priority. He has visited the region five times since February in order to achieve this herculean task, including a recent four day visit where he shuttled back and forth between Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian leaders. Mel Gibson has a greater chance of being named the Jewish Federation’s person of the year than Kerry does of achieving his goal. As anyone not named John Kerry could tell you, the conditions on the ground aren’t exactly optimal for achieving a lasting peace.”
5.) Tweet of Yesterday — KimJongNumberUn: OK, I’m turning off the Internet now. For the entire country.
6.) Today in North Korean News — BREAKING: “Fascist Suppression by S. Korean Puppet Authorities under Fire”
VIDEO: Charles Krauthammer says Obama “bystander” policy on Egypt “a shocking position”