OBAMA, SAY SOMETHING ABOUT PIRACY

Obama is supposed to be such a great politician.

Well, this politician for the ages is making some enormous missteps by making no public statements about the Somali pirates and the hostage crisis.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama has declined for a second day to answer questions about the Somali piracy standoff.

Reporters asked the president about the situation at the end of a White House meeting Friday with his economic advisers. Obama did not answer.

...Obama also brushed aside questions Thursday when reporters sought his reaction on the incident.

Other U.S. and White House officials have offered assurances that the administration is working to resolve the situation peacefully.

What the hell is Obama's problem?

Everybody is following this standoff, the world is watching, and Obama thinks it's acceptable for him to refuse to make any comments about it?

It's a shocking display of arrogance. He seems so out of touch and aloof.

What's he afraid of?

Can't he relay just a few words of concern for Capt. Richard Phillips' safety and offer prayers for his family? That certainly wouldn't impact any on-going negotiations.

Maybe Obama can throw in a brief statement about the crisis during his weekly address.

At this point, Obama is already days late in commenting. Too late.
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UPDATE: Weekly Address

Obama urges cooperation on global threats

President Barack Obama invoked Christian and Jewish holidays on Saturday to urge nations to confront together the challenges he saw firsthand during last week's marathon trip to Europe.

Obama said no single nation can solve the problems stemming from the financial meltdown, climate change and nuclear weapons. Fresh from his first trip overseas as president, Obama asked Americans — and a global audience — to focus on areas of common interest instead of differences.

"These are challenges that no single nation, no matter how powerful, can confront alone," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. "The United States must lead the way. But our best chance to solve these unprecedented problems comes from acting in concert with other nations."

Obama pointed to his London meeting with leaders of the G-20 nations — a gathering that represented 85 percent of the global economy — where he pressed for increased regulation and economic stimulus. He also noted his attendance at the NATO summit in France to discuss strategy toward Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as his speeches against nuclear weapons in the Czech Republic and about faith divisions in Turkey.

All are big-picture priorities for the young administration and most have general support among Obama's U.S. constituents.

"With all that is at stake today, we cannot afford to talk past one another. We can't afford to allow old differences to prevent us from making progress in areas of common concern," Obama said. "We can't afford to let walls of mistrust stand. Instead, we have to find — and build on — our mutual interests. For it is only when people come together, and seek common ground, that some of that mistrust can begin to fade. And that is where progress begins."

Still nothing about Capt. Richard Phillips and the Somali pirates.

Just the same old platitudes.