Abdullah dropped the Obama 2012 campaign contribution on the floor.

The traditional greeting is to bow and kiss the hand of the king.That is why Obama is going to the left to kiss the king's hand. This is called "adab" (respect, politeness).

The traditional greeting is to bow and kiss the hand of the king.That is why Obama is going to the left to kiss the king's hand. This is called "adab" (respect, politeness).

The traditional greeting is to bow and kiss the hand of the king.That is why Obama is going to the left to kiss the king's hand. This is called "adab" (respect, politeness).

I don't call it a bow...it was groveling before a muslim monarch.

Maybe if Obama had grown up in the USA instead of muslim Indonesia he might have known Americans have too much pride for such groveling. But pride is a foreign notion, particularly to leftards like Obama.

The American tradition is that our leaders do not bow or otherwise display subservience to foreign leaders, including the Queen of England our closest ally.

And that's a bow, period. His shoulders are parallel to the floor. I agree that denying it is really his only option, but it was stupid to do.

"There's no question that Obama is considerably taller than Obama,"

I know what you mean, just FYI.

It's traditional for SUBJECTS to bow and kiss the hand of the king, not the leader of the free world. HUGE difference.

mark,
I'm aware that a bow and a kiss of the king's hand is only for subservients.
That is what Obama demonstrated. He is a fool, and totally uneducated in protocol. Obama has muslim friends and I know they do the bow and kiss as a matter of routine. I used to be one.

Actually, a man as well-groomed as Obama is almost certainly quite versed in all forms of protocol, if nothing else. The simple fact is that his first diplomatic efforts have a goal that most Americans refuse to believe he is seriously pursuing: befriending Iran. It's the stupidest thing he could possibly try to do, but by gawd he's going to do it, just because he thinks he can. All the Iranians are demanding in return is that he alienate all the US's traditional allies, destroy Israel, and accept the fact that the US must bow to the leaders of the third world, including the ones that demand the US must enslave itself to their whims so their own populations don't have to till the soil any more to feed themselves.

I'm sure Iran will be very happy to play along, right up until they stick a knife in our backs as they did after Carter tried to initiate diplomatic contacts with Ayatollah Khomeni.

I agree that denying it is really his only option, but it was stupid to do.

I agree with the second statement, but not the first.

If it's been said once, it's been said a thousand times: in Washington, what gets you in hot water is not what you did, but the coverup.

If President Obama had said, at a subsequent press conference, something like this: "I didn't intend to bow, and I'm sorry if it looked like a bow; I'll make sure to avoid such misunderstandings in the future" -- I would have been fine with that. (Note that he wouldn't even have to admit whether he bowed or not.)

This did not need to be a big issue; some honesty and candor could have defused it on the day it happened. And honesty and transparency are part of why he was elected, right?

respectfully,
Daniel in Brookline

Sorry, the first line of my 11:43 comment should have been emphasized. I was quoting Mark Buehner (see above), not speaking for myself, in that first line; the rest is mine.

I don't care what that video shows. Obama did not bow to the Saudi King. Karl Rove doctored the video to make it look like he did.

What's disturbing is that the WH would lie about something this "insignificant." Gibbs....move along, most people just care about the economy. C'mon, some of us are intelligent. If you lie about this, then I KNOW you will lie about ANYTHING!!

From the one viewpoint, it's conceivable that he's going to pick something up off the floor. The questions then become what and why, and why was it important for him to pick it up immediately.

However, another camera angle shows Obama's other hand to be at his knee; he's not picking anything up off the floor. It was a bow, plain and simple, and should not have been done.

Obama dropped his mini-teleprompter.

He'd rather insult the king's height than admit *that*.

I showed the clip to my children and asked "What is the President doing here?"

They both immediately said "Bowing."

Emporer's clothes, etc.

Uh, emperor...

I offer a simple "tall man-short king" test:

If the tall man's head drops below that of the king's, then it is a bow. Look at the video again and test against this criteria.

Here is an interesting take on this ... if the White House is denying that Obama bowed, then the White House is confirming that for Obama to bow would be a violation of protocol and not good. So the White House confirms "bow == bad".

Now, go watch the video again (and again) and tell me what your lying eyes say.

As far as I'm concerned it's ridiculous that so much is being made over this. I want a head of state that can meet and greet courteously, and I see nothing wrong with this.

Remember Roosevelt's maxim about speech and sticks. Be concerned about the policy, not the form of address.

But its been conclusively shown that he didn't pick anything up, so what other explanation does that leave?

That was probably O's stunt double. Couldn't have been him because he was on the grassy knoll out back at the time. Or something. Anyway, he DID NOT BOW. Got it?
/Gibbs off

What I find puzziling in all this is why the obama adminstration would stir this all up again by lying about whether it was a bow or not? They just should have ignored the press inquiries and privately admitted it was a minor proticol lapse instead of lying like a teenager caught fibbing whether they took the trash out or not. It's just embarassing.

--I want a head of state that can meet and greet courteously, and I see nothing wrong with this. ---

But heads of state do not greet like this. Slaves and subjects do.

The Saudi king would not have expected this courtesy until now. I was kind of shocked that a black American would show this kind of subservience. Its all about freedom isn't it? I thought American freedom was a gift that blacks might value - especially since in many cases it was Muslims that sold them into slavery.

Yeah. I guess, on further reflection, his lying about it is better than, "Yeah, I bowed to the King of the country that funds Wahibbi doctrine around the world with your gas money. And it was on your behalf, Jim, and on the behalf of all Americans. You got a problem with that?"

Yesterday, I think, Powerline had video from a slightly different viewpoint. Obama's left hand is clearly dangling slightly below his on waist, on his right side. Quite impossible for his to have then "grasped his hand with two hands" unless Teh Won has three hands. (Although that might explains some of his more wobbly comments that tend to go, "on the one hand, and then on the other hand, and then on yet another hand."

"As far as I'm concerned, there's now an element of mystery."

Perhaps I can scratch that itch:

Obama is considerably taller than King Abdullah. If he did not bow to the left, his head would have slammed into the King's belly.

If that fails to clear things up:

Would you stoop to retrieve something from the floor while engaged in shaking the hand of a King?

Try picking something up off of the floor yourself. FREEZE. Is your right leg extended behind you? Are you bending only one knee? Now, try it again while extending your right arm as if to shake hands. Did King A. appear to be helping the President keep his balance?

Did Obama, in fact, actually pick anything up? If so, why the generic "something" rather than, say, a "piece of paper"? Did he put anything into his pocket? Would he pick up a stray bit of deviled egg, do you suppose? And what would he do with it if he did? Or was he simply so distracted by a piece of floor lint, that he forgot he was greeting a Middle Eastern potentate and ally (presumably for the very first time). How very rude!

FLOTUS once hinted broadly that the President left his own dirty socks on the floor. When did housekeeping become a priority -- or was it just the now traditional "top priority of the day"?

You're welcome.

Somebody up there said that Obama, being well-groomed (politically, I assume) must surely be aware of protocol.

That's a ridiculous assumption! He has no clue about class, much less protocol and that should have been obvious from his campaign.

The best I can about Obama is that he is a narcissistic opportunist. And that's when I'm in a good mood.

It wasn't a bow. It was a curtsy.

The white house should have just said Obama was following the little known tradition of shaking the Saudi King's knee. That would have been more plausible.

Roy Mustang: That was great XD Harsh, but great.

Now, it should be obvious to all that Obama's bow is a clear indication of submission to King Abdullah. Let's go over his entire posture, piece by piece:

1) His torso, from waist to shoulders, is straight as a post. Furthermore, his torso, from waist to shoulders, is roughly parallel to the floor. For thousands of years, this posture of the upper body has been regarded as a formal bow of submission; culture, relative height, gender, and all other factors are irrelevant to this basic fact, a fact which is still in full force today.

2) Obama is standing as far away as possible from King Abdullah as possible. Again, this is a gesture of submission-it is translated as "I am not worthy to invade your personal space". This bit of protocol is just as old and strong as #1.

3) Most importantly, Obama is not making eye contact with King Abdullah. Although there is another person in the way, you can clearly see Obama lower his eyes as he enters the bow. You can also clearly see him raise his head as he exits the bow. It is quite clear that he refuses to make eye contact during the bow. This is a gesture of submission even more powerful than the first two. When you make eye contact with a person, you are saying that you are this person's equal, or his/her superior. When you refuse to make eye contact, once again, you are clearly proclaiming that you are inferior to a person. Slaves are required to lower their eyes when their masters walk by. Back in the medieval ages, ladies turned their eyes to the closest wall when the "gentlemen" walked by.

Obama proclaimed his submission to King Abdullah with that bow, regardless of whether or not he intended to. This is shameful, and Obama screwed up horribly.

Thomas
Absolutely correct in your analysis.

Thomas,
in Obama's naivete. i believe, he expected the king ( small 'k') of the saudi's to bow to him at the same time he did. This is what muslims traditionally do, bow to each other.