Otto Warmbier’s Parents Critical of Obama Administration After Sons Death
I think it is unfortunate that the death of Otto Warmbier is taking on a political tone:
His parents told The Associated Press the day of his release that they wanted “the world to know how we and our son have been brutalized and terrorized by the pariah regime.”
Fred Warmbier praised his son’s “performance” and President Donald Trump’s administration. He was critical of the approach to his son’s situation taken by former President Barack Obama’s administration.
In a White House statement, Trump said, “A lot of bad things happened, but at least we got him home to be with his parents.” He called North Korea a “brutal regime.”
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said he offered his prayers as Warmbier’s parents “enter a time of grief no parent should ever know,” and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Warmbier’s death “touches the American heart like no other.” [Associated Press]
You can read more at the link, but the some in the far right are now blaming former President Obama for Warmbier’s death. First of all we don’t know what effort the Obama administration put into getting Warmbier’s release. Maybe they did try and what the North Koreans wanted in return was completely unreasonable. Maybe we will hear more from former Obama administration officials in the coming days on what happened. However instead of blaming President Obama it seems the blame should completely go on the Kim regime for Warmbier’s death.
Watched the doctor on TV, who said they had some kind of NK medical scan come back with the young man, and that comparing that one (early 2016) with their own scans, it was clear that the damage was done early, and had not changed much in the intervening 14 or 15 months. So it’s unlikely there would have been a different medical outcome if he had been brought back sooner. I had a relative die like this – I mean, brain starved of oxygen – and the damage was done within minutes because they lived more than 8 minutes away by ambulance from a decent medical facility. So to suggest that the Obama administration is to blame is, I think, just foolish and uninformed.
“First of all we don’t know what effort the Obama administration put into getting Warmbier’s release.”
Let’s all be honest here… including with ourselves.
The Obama administration was weak, was known to be weak by its action, and was treated as weak.
If retrieving Warmbier had been a priority, it could have been done… but it was not a priority… and Obama didn’t have the will to do it even if it had been.
History takes a while to catch up… but the Obama administration will ve remembered for general weakness, for laying the groundwork for future failured, and for lacking in real scandal… but only because the media covered for them.
My condolences to the parents…
According to Mr. Warmbier, Obama administration told them to keep a low profile.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF2tDnkvd2s
It does not look good for the Obama administration.
Similar thing happened to the abductees of Japanese citizens. Social Democratic Party (Japan) kept dismissing and denied and ignoring the existence of abductions while Abe and the previous administrations worked hard for the return of the abductees by putting pressures onto North Korea.
The lesson was North Korea only comes out to talk or compromise under certain pressure. Obama administration and their “strategic patience” did not help much.
CH is right. (Wow, did I just say that?) The Obama regime was weak and feckless when it came to foreign policy. He called ISIS “the JV team”, he drew a red line that Syria pissed all over, and he allowed insurgents to breach and the U.S. consulate in Bengazi and kill several men including the Ambassador. His “strategic patience” policy was at the root of a lot of problems. Warmbier’s case was just the latest in a string of foreign policy faux pas.
If what Jon Paul said about the medical evaluation of Warmbier’s condition are true then the Kim regime also knew over a year ago that this person was in critical condition and needed more help than their stone age medical facilities could give him. They covered up his condition until it was determined that he might die in their custody before they released him on “humanitarian” grounds.
This is just another point to put on the list of things that north Korea needs to account for. I am hoping that future Trump actions take this into account and that north Korea gets all that is coming to it.
He went into the coma over a year ago. The way he was manually carried off that medical evacuation aircraft suggests he didn’t need critical care life support. Six days later he dies at home. His family doesn’t want an autopsy. Hmmmm … :hmm:
You thinking mercy killing, JoeC?
I don’t know if I could ever do that to or for my child, regardless of prognosis. I would imagine most parents would have a very tough time with something like that, especially so soon after getting their child back.
Don’t you think most parents would hold out hope for at least a few years that their son’s condition would improve?
Either way, I hope Warmbier is not the rallying cry for war or military action against the NorKs. Even if something should be done at some point, there are already reasons enough without manipulating peoples’ emotions over a kid who made a poor decision. Not picking on Otto. Just saying.
If anything, I think this should be used as an example to help push for travel restrictions on US citizens going to North Korea. Even if the administration doesn’t want to go that far, a statement could be issued to US travelers that there is no guarantee of aid or assistance should anything happen to them while visiting North Korea.
The President said:
If that’s the standard for action, well, we’ve had 2 more Americans taken by North Korea since he took office and their detentions are much less justified. Kim Sang-duk: 2 months and counting. Kim Hak-Song: a month and a half and counting.
If Obama gave $50 million to North Korea in return for Otto, then I’m sure those criticizing him now would have criticized him for different reasons.