A South American city was long overdue to host the Olympics. So to the extent that I care about it, I’m pleased Rio de Janeiro has been selected as the site for the 2016 Games.
But I’m struck by the gleeful reaction of several rightwing Americans– normally bursting with patriotic pride– to the news that an American city was not selected.
The reason, of course, is that said city, Chicago, is the hometown of one Barack Obama, who– along with every other head of a state with a city in the running– went to Copenhagen to make a personal pitch to the Olympics committee.
Politico.com reports:
Newt Gingrich rolled all the bad-good news into a single Tweet, throwing Iran in for good measure: “President Obama fails to get the Olympics while unemployment goes to 9.8% Iran continues nuclear program. America needs focused leadership.”
GOP operative Matt Machowiak was giddy, ” Actually Obama got the flowers, not even the bronze”
RedState’s Erick Erickson, actually laughed [in print]:
“Hahahahaha. I thought the world would love us more now that Bush was gone. I thought if we whored ourselves out to our enemies, great things would happen. Apparently not. So Obama’s pimped us to every two bit thug and dictator in the world, made promises to half the Olympic committee, and they did not even kiss him. So much for improving America’s standing in the world, Barry O.”
There are cooler heads: Former Mitt Romney spokesman Kevin Madden passed along some entirely unheeded advice from another Republican strategist, Scott Stanzel: “Note to GOP officials/consultants – resist temptation to pile on about Chicago losing just becuz Obama made the pitch.”
Or it may simply be a matter of relief that a big northern Democratic city– clearly not part of Sarah Palin’s “real America”— was passed over.
