Remember how George W. Bush’s cowboy demeanor was such an embarrassment to the American cognoscenti and media minders? How his rough manners and folksy drawl had the sophisticates on this side of the pond flushed with embarrassment? Remember how glad they were that a witty, urbane, and cultured member of Academia would replace him as America’s principal representative abroad?
World leaders gathered in Los Cabos, Mexico for the seventh annual Group of 20 summit on Monday. As part of the festivities, all of the assembled heads of state posed for a cheerful family photo–except for one. According to the White House pool report from the photo shoot filed by the Wall Street Journal’s Carol Lee, photographers asked the leaders to wave for the cameras and Russia’s once and future strongman Vladimir Putin declined to pose for the picture.
“They all said to wave to the cameras, and most of them did. President Putin didn’t wave,” Ms. Lee wrote.
There were several other priceless details in Ms. Lee’s dispatch from the high powered photo shoot. Apparently, despite being surrounded by twenty other world leaders, President Barack Obama “was chewing gum the whole time.”
Instapundit’s post got this response: “I assume he was sitting and not walking.” “As for Obama,”Andrew Malcolm quipped, “he was into his cool casual mode at the formal photo session.” But no one answered the real burning question (NSFW):
Did he bring enough for everyone?
Got an Obamateurism of the Day? If you see a foul-up by Barack Obama, e-mail it to me at [email protected] with the quote and the link to the Obamateurism. I’ll post the best Obamateurisms on a daily basis, depending on how many I receive. Include a link to your blog, and I’ll give some link love as well. And unlike Slate, I promise to end the feature when Barack Obama leaves office.
Illustrations by Chris Muir of Day by Day. Be sure to read the adventures of Sam, Zed, Damon, and Jan every day!
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