As Mr. Obama stepped out onto the podium he was met with a wall of applause. As he began to speak the crowd fell silent, hanging to his every word. Entranced by his speech, they broke into cheers every time he paused. Surprisingly this scene took place not when Mr. Obama won the presidential race but rather on the campaign trail. This scene recreated itself time and time again throughout his tour of the continent. He was effectively showing the world and America that he could command respect at home and abroad. Fast forward to 2009 and President Obama is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. While coveted and prestigious, the award has a history of controversy and this would be no exception.
President Obama was awarded the prize ‘for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.’ The Nobel Prize is usually presented to someone based on the merits of their accomplishments. This raises a very fair question of whether or not President Obama deserves the award so early in his career as a major world player. Perhaps it is best to examine how Obama has affected the global atmosphere thus far.
It is no secret that over the last eight years America’s reputation was not the best around the world and that there was no love lost between former President Bush and the global community. President Bush was viewed as a corrupt and immoral person who swung around the might of America without considering how it might affect others. Fair or not, the world’s perception of President Bush was projected onto the entire United States and its people. This led to a great amount of animosity and distrust between America and the other major players on the world stage.
It is this climate of distrust and anger towards the United States that President Obama first arrived in. Even while he was only on the campaign trail, the rest of the world and especially Europe became hugely fond of him. To them he was the complete antithesis of President Bush, they views him as someone who was smart, intelligent, fair, and understanding of global issues. The world embraced President Obama’s image and personality and hailed him as the world leader they had been looking for.
Whether one agrees with this sentiment or not, it is hard to deny that the newfound love and appreciation of the United States and its people by the rest of the world has made diplomatic issues easier to resolve and cooperative action easier to take. The world now views its relationship with America as one of mutual respect and mutual exchange of favors and ideas. The UN has made passing resolutions much easier as other countries are not as quick to block initiatives forwarded by the United States. The United States has always felt a sense of isolation from the global community, and during the Bush years this feeling of American isolation only grew. It is safe to say that President Obama has allowed the United States to join the global community as a respected member.
The Nobel Prize itself should not be viewed as a pure award based solely on one’s merit. It is very much a political tool that can be and has been used in the past to make a point. The Europeans obviously made the point that they thoroughly and completely despised President Bush, so much so that they would be willing to give President Obama who has not as yet accomplished any physical or tangible goals the award The Nobel Committee has effectively placed their reputation on how Obama continues to perform as a global leader.
President Obama has his work cut out for him, he must prove that he can do more than just change the United States image. He does have the very real opportunity to change a lot in the world. From domestic issues to foreign policy, he may very well prove to be one of the most influential Presidents of all time. Lets hope that he really earns the prize he was awarded and makes good on his promises. For now though we can rest a little easier knowing that the world once again looks to us and feels some measure of brotherhood rather than just disgust. While being true to our nations ideals is important we cannot achieve the goal of liberty for all if we do not cooperate with all the other nations that inhabit this planet. The Nobel Prize may serve as the instrument that spurs the United States to action and at the same time lowers resistance to our actions from the rest of the world.
