This is President Obama’s speech from the evening of Sunday May 1st.
Unlike the people who are dancing in the streets outside of the White House, I have a mixture of feelings. They’re definitely not exhuberant.
I do feel happy for President Obama – that he can say that this was done under his watch. The timing has to be deeply satisfying for him. His speech preempted Trump’s TV show this evening [or so I hear!] and it comes after a fevered campaign on Trump’s part to discredit Obama somehow using his birth certificate.
Tonight’s speech was also timed exactly 8 years after George W. Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” speech. In 2009, Bush said that he regretted the use of that banner. Bush also used a whole aircraft carrier, a flight suit, a jet.. what looked like an entire suite of manly military props.
Tonight, Obama simply delivered this speech. No theatrics were required. A key mission really was accomplished.
Full transcript of speech HERE
blue cheddar 
I am pretty disgusted that I saw so many people dancing in the streets over this death. How many Americans actually read or even think for themselves anymore? Bin Laden didn’t have anything to do with 911. The worst thing that he ever did to our country was that he refused to allow the US, CIA to move into the middle east to take over their oil reserves like they wanted. What we are not told (read Economic Hit Man by John Perkins) is that the CIA would work with multinational corporations and the World Bank or the IMF to take over the natural resources of third world countries. They loan them money from the World Bank which they know they won’t be able to pay back and then the Bank forces them to accept the multinationals or our military to move into their country and take it over. We now have 1077 military bases in other countries. 1077. I used to wonder how they all got there but now I know.
I hate to say it but anyone that still believes that Bin Laden had anything to do with 911, they have not bothered to check into it. Go to the site http://ae911truth.org/ I mean lets face it, architects and engineers should know how buildings fall right?
This comment is not really for this posting but didn’t know how to get in contact. Are you aware of the following video from Scott Walker outline a new program to honor state employees. See link below. I think we should have a nomination campaign for Mark Miller!
http://walker.wi.gov/section.asp?linkid=1750&locid=177
Holly
Whenever a human being dies, I am sad. I have an over-abundance of empathy. I think of a person who had a mother and a family.. loved. Even an international criminal is a human being. I am no Christian, either. I don’t think he has a “soul”.
Bin Laden’s life sacrificed is political. Now Obama gets to be a conquerer. You can reinterpret it in a variety of ways, but you can’t take this away from Obama– the FBI’s most wanted man was brought down under his administration. Fuel for a 2nd term. I have criticisms of our President. But I frequently keep them to myself or direct them to him in a letter. It’s because as I survey the alternative to being on the Prez Obama track, I’ve been not just disappointed but also frightened.
Imagine though if Prez Obama’s agenda made me happy – -think of how hard I’d fight for him. That’s the difference. He’s too much the corporatist. He can’t do that and win love.
If you want to see me jump up and down happy, tell me the troops are coming home from Afghanistan because we’ve figured out it’s a waste of money and lives. Because no outsider in the history of humankind has won there. Because we need that $ for K-12 schools, housing, jobs dev’t., training/college, healthcare, new energy dev’t…
I have mixed feeling and I’d say exuberance or jubilation isn’t in the mix at all. I mostly have questions like:
Why is it that anytime we talk about justice, bringing on someone else’s death seems to be required?
Why is it that we think that this somehow solves anything? Isn’t it conceivable that our actions have just emboldened a new generation of terrorists…perhaps even worse than Bin Laden?
Aren’t these kinds of actions (and our collective responses through out history) what made us the target to begin with?
And perhaps most importantly, what about the kids in our country who went to bed hungry last night or who might be even more hungry this summer when schools out?
But I figured I’d just be a Debbie Downer. I’m glad someone somewhere is a bit more measured on this things.