Sources: C-Span and Washington Times 12-10-2009

This president has accomplished nothing on the world stage

Mr. Obama can point to no achievements that have substantially advanced the cause of international peace. His Middle East peace plan is in tatters and will need to be revised substantially if it has any hope of success. His "open hand" approach to Iran has been met with disdain by the ayatollahs, and his failure to support Iranian protesters seeking freedom was roundly and justly criticized. His regional peace plan for Afghanistan, Pakistan and India was dead on arrival. He has made no progress dealing with North Korea. He has failed to confront China with any hard issues, particularly on the question of human rights. The United States played no active role in resolving the political crisis in Honduras, and actually undermined the cause of democratic self-government in that nation.

In short, Mr. Obama has not been a central factor anywhere in the world resolving a conflict, achieving a substantial peace agreement or concluding a multinational treaty.

Mr. Obama's few significant actions on the global stage are not the stuff of peace. He accepts the award 10 days after announcing the deployment of 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. Unmanned drone aircraft continue to rain death from the skies of Pakistan, a program that has been expanded and intensified on Mr. Obama's watch. Some international observers consider the drone attacks to be illegal, and the International Criminal Court is investigating possible war crimes committed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

The Nobel Peace Prize should be given in recognition of great achievements, inspiring struggles or lifetimes in service to the cause of peace. Had the award come later in Mr. Obama's presidency, it might have been a capstone event, the culmination of years of effort and maybe even after the realization of substantial objectives. Instead, the prestigious prize goes to a neophyte leader who has accomplished nothing. It officially marks the end of the period when Mr. Obama can get away with coasting through his presidency.

We are long past the point where the president's supporters can hail him as a historic figure based solely on his ethnicity or excuse his failures by pointing to the previous administration.