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MSN
White House: We
should have sent higher official to Paris march
© The Washington Post
The White House said Monday that it should have sent a higher-profile
official to a Paris rally where 1.5 million people marched in a show of
unity against terrorism. The absence of President Obama and other
top administration officials drew intense scrutiny on both sides of the
Atlantic on Monday, with Republicans sharply criticizing the president
at home and both domestic and foreign media raising questions about the
dearth of U.S. presence at the event.
"I think it's fair to say that we should have sent someone with a
higher profile" to the event, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest
said Monday. The U.S. Ambassador to France attended. Of the criticism,
Earnest said, "We agree that we should have sent someone with a higher
profile in addition to the ambassador to France."
Days after terrorist attacks left 17 people dead, more than 40 leaders
including French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela
Merkel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas attended the Sunday march.
Several leading Republicans criticized the Obama administration for not
having a more prominent presence at the rally.
"The absence is symbolic of the lack of American leadership on the
world stage, and it is dangerous. The attack on Paris, just like
previous assaults on Israel and other allies, is an attack on our
shared values," wrote Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) in a Time op-ed.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said on "CBS This Morning" that it was a
"mistake" not to send a higher-ranking U.S. official to the event.
"I understand that when the president travels, he brings with him a
security and communications package which is intense. And I understand
you drop that into the middle of something like this, it could be
disruptive," Rubio said. "There’s a plethora of people they could have
sent. I think in hindsight I hope that they would have done it
differently...
Read the rest of the article at MSN
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