So. What happened?
President Barack Obama dashed overnight to Copenhagen, waved the flag, praised everyone in sight, and came home with Nothing, Nada, Naught, Zero, Zip, Zilch (couldn’t find the Danish word or would have thrown that in too).
The Olympics Oracle, after much fumbling with the envelope, read the winner and Rio de Janeiro scooped up the 2016 Summer Games.
Chicago — the hometown for Obama, his wife, and close advisers like David Axelrod and Rahm Emanuel — was left out in the cold, not even making it to the T2 (Top Two).
Was it the unbridled enthusiasm in Rio for bringing home the Olympics, compared with the protesters from Chicago who didn’t want the games anywhere near their town?
“I think that the city of Chicago would have welcomed having the Olympics in 2016,” said State Department spokesman Ian Kelly, also a native of Chicago. “I don’t think this necessarily demonstrates that Chicago is not a welcoming place.” 
Was it the warmer welcome from Brazil to international travelers, compared with the post-9/11 U.S. security consciousness?
“We recognize that we need to do more to make it easier for legitimate visa applicants to make it to the U.S. We understand we have an image problem about that process,” Kelly said.
Was it that the IOC liked the sound of Duran Duran’s “Rio” and Tom Jobim’s “The Girl From Ipanema” rather than Frank Sinatra’s “My Kind of Town (Chicago Is)” or Robert Johnson’s “Sweet Home Chicago” ?
Did Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva outcharm Obama?
Now the question is whether the failure in Denmark will tarnish Obama’s image at home and abroad. What do you think? Should he have made the trip to Copenhagen at all? Is this a big failure or just a small bump?
Inevitably, Obama’s trip became fodder for Republican critics. Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele: “While I am disappointed with the IOC’s decision, I look forward to the president returning stateside so that he can refocus his efforts on the growing unemployment crisis that was highlighted by today’s monthly jobs report.”
Click here for more Reuters political coverage
Photo Credit: Reuters/pool (President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and Chicago 2016 CEO Pat Ryan leave stage after presentation), Reuters/Sergio Moraes (surfer rides the waves in Rio), Reuters/Frank Polich (Lake Michigan in Chicago)
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I THINK HE SHOULD BE MORE WORRIED ABOUT WHATS GOING ON IN OUR COUNTRY. HE SHOULD NOT BE ENVOLVED AT ALL IN THE OLYMPICS.I DON’T FEEL HE IS DOING A VERY GOOD JOB FOR WE TAXPAYERS.
- Posted by WARNER SMITHWho wants to go to Chicago? It is windy and cold, O;hare airport is an airport that I will always reroute from so as to never be stuck in its traffic. It is urban with urban problems. Sure, there are some redeeming features, but why would any one voluntarily go there? Against Rio??? C’mon, if you had that kind of money to go traveling, where would you pick!! I am amazed that anyone even thought it had a snowball’s chance.
- Posted by renwickDon’t blame Obama. Blame the U.S. Olympic Committee. The fact is clear that Chicago does not, and never has enjoyed a positive image in the eyes of the world. The city’s history of political corruption, and its’ image as a crime center going all the way back to the days of Al Capone are well known. The disturbing and shocking video of last week’s tragic beating to death of an honor student by marauding gang members has traveled the world by way of YouTube. Chicago is very unattractive to the rest of the world. The U.S. Olympic Committee had a chance about a year ago to put its’ best foot forward, and they failed big time, by choosing to placate the anticipated next President and his home town, over America’s best liked city to most of the world, which was San Francisco. Had they not stabbed San Francisco in the back, maybe they could have won the 2016 bid promoting San Francisco instead. San Francisco has the best international image of any American big city. It could have been a real showplace to the world, and San Francisco wouldn’t have needed, Obama, Oprah, and Michael Jordan as its’ pitchmen. The city sells itself, and it was the only strong competition the U.S. could have put up against a very strong and compelling bid by Rio De Janeiro. Everyone knew this! Congratulations to Rio, the better city won out.
- Posted by MichaelWith America’s tarnished reputation around the world is it really a surprise? All these dumb liberals can’t pull their head out of their posteriors long enough to see reality. They still live in the 60s. All the Kennedys are dead, Martin Luther King, Jr. is dead, Woodstock is over, nobody cares about Vietnam, the counterculture is now mainstream, and the hippies are now old. It’s time to move on.
- Posted by MufasoI am still laughing,
SPENT 3 million dollars on the trip, your money
- Posted by ian“I thought we were going to win this,” said Chicago-based civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson, adding he was shocked by the rejection.
“We send our ‘A’ team — the president, the first lady making such a great presentation, and (TV talk show queen) Oprah (Winfrey) and the mayor and the governor. It just may be that we fought a great air war but this is a ground war struggle,” Jackson said.
- Posted by Gary CMaybe the “A” Team was interperted as being less that an a team!!!
I would like to know why he and his wife had to take seperate planes? Seems they could have taken the same plane and saved the taxpayers a lot of money. This whole thing was another waste of taxpayer dollars for the President to make a move on a personal whim.
- Posted by ljskListen, whether the President went or not. It was obvious that Brazil would have gotten it. The Olympics has already been hosted in all of the other countries. It was ony fair to give Brazil the chance to host the Olympics for the first time.
- Posted by T.D.The President should really thank his lucky stars Chicago didn’t get it because no city, ever, makes a profit from hosting the olympics.
President Obama was not the only statesman in attendance. There was also the King of Spain.