President Barack Obama and his administration received a great deal of backlash from liberal and conservative media alike for their failure to attend the Paris unity march held over the weekend.
Here's what some TV personalities and commentators had to say:
1. Piers Morgan
CNN's Piers Morgan delivered one of the sharpest criticisms of the White House.
“America, the world’s greatest superpower, just didn’t bother to go.
“President Obama didn’t go.
“The First Lady didn’t go.
“Vice President Biden didn’t go.
“Secretary of State Kerry didn’t go.
“Even Attorney-General Holder, almost as low down the White House administration food chain of authority as I am, didn’t attend the march. And he was already in Paris for terror-related meetings!
“Instead, Obama decided that America would be represented by the US Ambassador to France, Jane Hartley. Somebody who until yesterday I had never heard of, and whom, with no disrespect to her, I doubt more than 0.00001% of anyone on Planet Earth would recognize.
Morgan goes on to chastise the U.S. President specifically:
“Now, we know that this president doesn’t particularly care for ‘optics’. Anyone, as he did, who can tee off a golf game – with a massive grin on his face - precisely seven minutes after giving a lip-trembling speech about an American citizen being beheaded is demonstrably not someone who cares much for appearances.
"But this wasn’t about him. This was about the world standing up to one of the most disgusting attacks on freedom in my lifetime.
“And frankly, when you’re the ‘leader of the free world’ and this happens to one of your greatest allies, then you damn well get on the world’s most luxurious plane and go march with everyone else.”
2. Greta Van Susteran
Fox News Channel personality Greta Van Susteran took to Facebook to publicly apologize to the French people for Obama's "bad manners" and "dropping the ball."
Her post reads, “I am sorry that our President didn’t go to France today and stand with your President and other world leaders against terrorism."
"It was an important statement to send to France, to the world and to terrorists and frankly he blew it."
She continued, "It was a big missed opportunity for my President and thus for all Americans. He should have gone. It was a mistake that he did not. Sometimes mistakes like that are made.”
Admirably, turning her readers' focus to the bigger picture, Van Susteran went on to say,
“Despite today’s absence, I know our President wants to stop world terrorism but his bad manners today – or maybe just dropping the ball – is not something we should harbor but rather drop and move on. It may be easier for you to drop than many Americans. As already noted, I am not happy with him tonight, but I will get over it. But, in the mean time, I do want the citizens of France to know we Americans stand with you and that we need each other to fight terrorism.”
3. Jake Tapper
The CNN anchor and chief Washington correspondent had some choice words for the Obama administration.
“I say this as an American -- not as a journalist, not as a representative of CNN -- but as an American: I was ashamed,” Jake Tapper said.
He explained,
“I certainly understand the security concerns when it comes to sending President Barack Obama, though I can't imagine they're necessarily any greater than sending the lineup of other world leaders, especially in aggregate.
“But I find it hard to believe that collectively President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Attorney General Eric Holder -- who was actually in France that day for a conference on counterterrorism -- just had no time in their schedules on Sunday. Holder had time to do the Sunday shows via satellite but not to show the world that he stood with the people of France?"
Tapper not-so-jokingly quipped,
“There was higher-level Obama administration representation on this season's episodes of 'The Good Wife' on CBS.”
4. Andrea Mitchell
On the Today Show Monday morning, MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell discussed the President’s absence among other world leaders at the march as a “ham handed” decision.
“Of course there are security concerns every time the president or the vice president travels, and their presence could have inconvenienced those who did attend, but one senior official said it sure seemed ham handed.”
5. Josh Rogin
While watching the rally take place, the Bloomberg View columnist wrote, “Many said the Obama White House simply isn’t skilled, or doesn’t care, about doing the small things that can make a big difference when it comes to maintaining relationships and showing respect. In doing so, the White House often misses opportunities and lets poor optics overshadow positive contributions.
“Luckily on Sunday, there were plenty of other voices to rally in their absence,” Rogin said.
6. Rick Ungar
Here’s what the self-proclaimed left-wing politics and policy columnist had to say:
“While I have often taken issue with the enemies of Obama who unreasonably and, in my judgment, unfairly criticize and condemn his every move, the President’s decision to pass on the Paris Unity March puts significant tarnish on his Nobel Peace Prize, the awarding of which is now increasingly looking as satirical as the work done by the fallen cartoonists and writers at Charley Hebdo.”
He went on,
"Should we be so fortunate as to see the Paris Unity March turn out to be the focal point that leads to more effective world-wide strategies to end terrorism, the United States will always be remembered as the world player who didn’t show up."
Criticisms continue to roll in via broadcast and social media.
Persons across the aisle seem to agree—the United States President should have been present alongside France and other world leaders, even if he did consider the event “optics” at best.