Friday, April 17, 2009

Obama Speaks at Summit of the Americas

Update: See more video of Obama's speech here
Obama and Hugo Chavez
"We can't let ourselves be prisoners of past disagreements," Obama said. 
"I'm very grateful that President Ortega did not blame me for things that happened when I was 3 months old," he said. 
"There is no senior partner and junior partner in our relations." 



From Politico:
As they were lining up in reverse alpahbetical order by last name, Chavez was first. At this point, Obama walked across the room and introduced himself to Chavez, they chatted for a short time, and returned to line. When he returned to line he talkedwith President Bachelet of Chile and with President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva. Then Ortega walked into the room, past POTUS, and he stopped to introduce himself to POTUS. POTUS said it was is "gusto" - ie, pleasure - to meet him.

FYI, Chavez website says Chavez and POTUS talked about mutual desire to change the relationship of their countries. The senior administration official did not dispute this characterization.
Obama's arrival in Trinidad and Tobago: