Obama Will Take Measures that Work, Whether Right or Left

The day after the inauguration of the new President of the United States, Phillippe Grangereau, a Liberation correspondent in Washington, responded to your questions.

Genial. What do you think his priorities are?

Philippe Grangereau. To put the economy back on its feet, and to restore the moral authority of the United States on the international scene.

Huh. What role will Michelle Obama play during her husband’s term?

Grangereau: Michelle Obama will certainly have a much more important role than Laura Bush. But it is unknown as to what that role is right now.

Huh. Should we see any particular significance of the fact that Barack Obama took his oath under the name Barack Hussein Obama?

Grangereau: That’s his name.

OCM. What happened during the oath? Did Obama make a mistake with the words?

Grangereau: No, he tried to repeat the oath too quickly. Obama normally should have repeated the first part, and then the next, but they made him say both parts together.

OCM. What orders will Obama give Hillary Clinton in regards to the Near East?

Grangereau: They are both pro-Israel, but both of them would like to try to hammer out a peace agreement, despite everything. But it is not their biggest priority.

Jackie O. What did you think about the inauguration speech?

Grangereau: It was, at times, idealist and pragmatic, and therefore contradictory, but contradiction is the essence of politics.

FloA. Closing Guantanamo: is it a big ambition for Obama?

Grangereau: Yes, but it will, without a doubt, take more time than people imagine. And it is possible, after all is said and done, in a year and a half or two, when Guantanamo will really be closed, and there will still be “enemy combatants” imprisoned and without trial, elsewhere in the world like Afghanistan for example. In Guantanamo, there are prisoners that can be tried because there is evidence. There are prisoners that cannot be tried because there is no evidence. There are prisoners that cannot be tried because they were tortured. And there are prisoners who are fundamentally hostile to the United States, although they cannot be put on trial nor released. They are a minority, from ten to fifteen, but it will be necessary to find a new location to detain them.

Enterman. Is Obama now accepted as the President by the most conservative fringe of voters?

Grangereau: Obama holds a consensus for the moment. Even the most republican fringe of American political patchwork accept him, even if later on there will be attacks and critiques. Obama will bring politics to the center and will make decisions that work, whether they are right or left.

Sophie. We have the impression that Obama adopted a “marketing” position during his campaign. We don’t know where he sits politically. If he were French, where would he be? Socialist? Moderate? Conservative?

Grangereau: If he were French, he would greatly resemble Sarkozy. But on certain issues, such as the death penalty, which he supports, he is very much to the right.

Vévé. In your opinion, is there any serious dispute about Obama’s legitimacy as President?

Grangereau: No contest. All Americans applauded his inauguration, it’s the American way. For now, the entire country is behind him. He has the total support of 80 percent of Americans.

Mary Pop’s. Don’t you think the media concentrated a little hard on his inauguration? It’s been discussed nonstop for the past three days…

Grangereau: It is clearly a historic election for the United States and for the rest of the world.

FloA. Is there an idea of where to keep the detainees?

Grangereau: An expert on the subject, Ken Gude, who I interviewed, predicted that it would be in Afghanistan, because it’s where most of the “enemy combatants” were captured. But the general idea is to keep them somewhere that is difficult for the press to access. It is uncertain if Obama will reconstruct a little Guantanamo somewhere else, but it is probable. He would especially like to open a new front in Afghanistan where he would send 30,000 additional troops. Inevitably, more enemy combatants will be captured, because the Taliban are considered “enemy combatants”.

Marco. What does Obama think about Europe?

Grangereau: For Obama, Europe is an ally, and it is necessary to repair their relationship in order to help the United States accomplish its objectives.

FloA. Is such hysteria surrounding a President possible in France?

Grangereau: If an Arab candidate was elected, yes.

Mary Pop’s. Were you disappointed by the inauguration speech?

Grangereau: Yes, a little, because Obama is an excellent speaker and the speech was a little generic for the occasion. Nevertheless, it was very well received by Americans.

Optimum. Is Obama interested in foreign politics?

Grangereau: He is a novice in terms of foreign politics. He has no experience, but it will take up half of his time, without a doubt because the United States will need to dramatically change their way of interacting with the world. The entire world welcomed his election, and he will have a somewhat long honeymoon period with foreign countries.

Mary Pop’s. And Michelle’s dress, what did you think about it?

Grangereau: Michelle’s dress is a burning issue – it was yellow and wrapped around her shape, and kept her warm. I didn’t find it extraordinary, but it was nevertheless much better than the horrible dress that she wore to the victory ceremony after the Primaries.

Marco. Concerning the environment, is there a chance that he would risk confronting businesses with over consumption habits?

Grangereau: If the price of crude oil continues to stay as low as it is, there will certainly be problems in imposing green economy. Paradoxically, the high price of oil is a blessing for ecologists!