Posted July 30, 2009 at 5:19 PM

http://exurbanleague.com/2009/07/30/obama-insults-the-philippines.aspx?ref=rss

How do you say "condescending jerk" in Tagalog?

Another day, another gaffe. A few minutes ago in a joint appearance with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of the Philippines, Obama stepped in it again.David Jackson of _USA Today _provides the details in his White House pool report:

Obama praised Arroyo for her efforts to fight terrorism, and her help in dealing with the problems of Burma and North Korea. He noted the Philippines is hosting a conference next year on nuclear non-proliferation. "We're going to have a busy agenda together," Obama said.

He said the Philippines is a small country, but, to use a boxing metaphor, it "punches above its weight in the international arena."

Ahem. The Philippines is the 12th largest country in the world. It is larger than France, Germany, Egypt, Italy, Canada & the UK. It also covers a vast area of the western Pacific including more than 7,000 islands.

Could someone tell me why Obama is now insulting the Philippines? Oh that's right -- they're an ally. Nevertheless, I doubt that the proud Pinoy community enjoys the condescension.

The brief presser also provided evidence of the One's self-professed "profound humility":

A Philippine journalist asked each leader his or her impression of the other. Arroyo called Obama "cordial, warm, and welcoming."

Obama joked, "I'm sure she thinks I'm much younger looking than she expected."

In her response, Arroyo made her answer all about Obama. No one's surprised that Obama did the same.

*UPDATE: *Lynn B. of In Context reminds me that this isn't the first time Obama has slighted the Philippines.

To Obama, Philippines No Longer a Key U.S. Ally

The new U.S. secretary of state visited Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and China, but Filipinos were quick to note that her itinerary excluded the Philippines, which, together with Japan and South Korea, have security alliances with the United States.

Indonesia, which has no security alliance with the United States, was the only Southeast Asian country that Clinton visited...

As Clinton visited Asia, signals flared in the Philippines to remind her that its historic and strategic relations with the United States were being badly frayed.

These tensions have been exacerbated by Obama’s repeated snubs of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s attempts to seek a meeting with the U.S. leader or at least receive a return telephone call from him.

UPDATE #2 (6:20 p.m.): Reuters now has a full story up on the Obama/Arroyo meeting. Unlike USA Today's pool report, this one offers the complete Obama quote which, to be fair, doesn't sound as bad as reporter David Jackson's paraphrase.

Obama said: "Although the Philippines is not the largest of countries, it, using a phrase from boxing, punches above its weight in the international arena." (The AFP confirms this version of the statement.)

The statement still diminishes the guest, which is a diplomatic no-no. Nevertheless, it is not nearly as gaffe-tastic as calling the Philippines "a small country." Looks like Obama was ill-served by his MSM court stenographers.