An Imperial People ( La Nación, Argentina) “Our people, like so many others, did not vote yesterday. But we will be affected by what, with no regards towards us, the North American voters decided yesterday… Rather than torment the world in pursuit of imperial excesses, the new president will have to seduce it through a kind of leadership that allows him to unite people’s wills both within his country, and abroad.”
Obama should be better for world and Brazil, say specialists ( Diário do Comércio, Brazil)
“In the short run, McCain might have been better for Brazil, because of his stronger defense of free trade, while Obama and his party are against reducing tariffs that would benefit Brazilian ethanol, and other commodities. But Obama is better for the world, because he is more open to negotiations and diplomacy.”
An Invitation to Dream ( El País, Spain) “Bush’s bitter legacy means that Obama will face great, and unenviable challenges… In a world where achievements rarely meet expectations, Obama has set the line very high, with his invitation to dream again.”
The Man who is Needed ( Le Monde, France) “If it is fair to compare [Obama] to John Kennedy, ("a realist brilliantly disguised as a romantic"), it is immediately necessary to add that he is a man for the times, surely the best attuned to immerse America in the multipolar bath of the 21st century.”
Chávez ratifies interest in reestablishing dialogue with the U.S. ( El Universal, Venezuela) “On this day of hope, president Hugo Chávez, on behalf of the Venezuelan people, congratulates the people of the United States and president-elect Barack Obama for the important victory he has attained… In Simon Bolivar’s homeland, we are convinced that time has come to establish new relations between our countries, and with our region, based on the principles of sovereignty, equality, and true cooperation.”
Obama’s Victory Won’t Warm Russia’s-U.S. Relations ( Kommersant, Russia) “‘In B. Obama’s team, there are enough of those that, choosing my words carefully, treat Russia rather coldly, for instance, representatives of Eastern Europe’s lobby headed by Brzezinski and Albright. So, the work with components of the U.S. missile defense system in Eastern Europe will be hardly terminated,’ Margelov said.”
Israeli leaders congratulate Obama on presidential victory ( Jerusalem Post, Israel) “President Shimon Peres reiterated what he had said to Obama when he was in Israel, that the best thing he could do for Israel was ‘to be a great president of the United States of America.’ A president, he went on, should be ‘on the side of peace.’”
The Resurrection of the American Dream ( Der Spiegel, Germany) “Obama's tone embraces people, it doesn't exclude them. It's a tone of political romanticism. It doesn't solve problems, but it lessens the pain. Where Bush stoked fear, Obama spreads calm. The tone itself only accounts for half of his success, though. The surroundings determine whether it resonates. In the self-satisfied, successful America of the 1990s, Obama's tone would have been dismissed as too soft and too quiet.”
In Kenya, a holiday, song and dance for Obama ( Daily Nation, Kenya) “Shortly after CNN declared Obama the winner just before 7am (Kenya time) on Wednesday, President Kibaki announced that Kenyans will on Thursday take a day off to mark the historic election of Obama to the most powerful office on earth.”
Analysis: Barack Obama's victory is head-spinning stuff ( The Times, Britain) “The country regarded loftily by many Europeans as hopelessly racist has voted to be ruled by a black man.”
In Selma, tears of joy ( Toronto Star, Canada) “There'll be a black man in the White House come Jan. 20 and he won't be the janitor, the butler or the baker.” Bush & Co. to the dustbin of history? ( Al-Jazeera) “The change that will sweep US politics and its future identity will not stop at US borders but it will also be exported to the outside and will definitely reach the Arab region which has been tightly closed to all currents of democracy and political and economic reforms…Now we have an American administration that wants to save itself and learn from the mistakes of its predecessors in order to save its country and people.” McCain's Last Tango ( Handelsblaat) "No country for old men: Election night was a first class burial for John McCain. His catch-up attempt was unsuccessful—he was never able to free himself of the Republican party straight-jacket. It had turned the POW into a POGOP—Prisoner of the Good Old Party. McCain and his fellow Republicans failed (to address the) greatest challenge of the day: the financial crisis." …And a prank for the ages:Bush to cancel the election, declare a state of emergency and extend his term in office ( Elaph.com, London) “[President Bush] called an emergency joint session of congress to suspend the outcome of the presidential election, citing grave national security threats that would result from the election of Senator Barack Obama as president.”
