Word: berlusconi
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Does that mean it's up to the White House to tell Berlusconi basta? During the 2008 campaign, Republican political consultant Grover Norquist was lambasted by Obama supporters for describing the candidate as "John Kerry with a tan." But when it comes to Silvio, the Administration seems to want to play it cool. The U.S. embassy in Rome declined this week to comment on the latest quip. Asked Wednesday by TIME about the remarks, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said, "There are far bigger issues in the world than this...
That's true. And no doubt the issues of any perceived political incorrectness - and potential racial reverberations - are trickier to handle when the offender is the leader of a NATO ally. But Berlusconi's prominence is the point, and as the first black leader of the most powerful nation on earth, Obama is seen as a model by many countries struggling to integrate people of different races and religions. (See pictures of Barack Obama's family tree...
...Italy, where immigration has skyrocketed in the past decade, racism is becoming a front-burner issue. Aly Baba Faye, regional director in Rome of the Anti-Racism Observatory, says the Prime Minister's comments are indicative of attitudes in Italy and unhelpful in changing prejudices. "Berlusconi thinks he's funny, but he's not," says Faye, an Italian citizen who emigrated from Senegal 30 years ago. "For one world leader to talk about the skin color of another is utterly disrespectful and sets a bad example for ordinary folk." Faye says Berlusconi's comments make it more likely that people...
...Italy's first pro-Obama initiative during the 2008 campaign, says he understands the President's not wanting to turn the issue into a diplomatic affair. "But someone has to make him stop. Maybe just a private note through the embassy?" Or maybe the next time he sees Berlusconi, Obama himself can lean over and say, "Hey Silvio, you know the tan jokes? Basta." - With reporting by Michael Scherer / Washington...
...Read: "Photos of Nude Partygoers Add to Berlusconi's Woes...