Obama’s low profile amid bin Laden’s death unites America

U.S. President Barack Obama has kept a low profile over the killing of Osama bin Laden to avoid the perception that he is exploiting the situation for his re-election. What he seeks is a true national unity.

Obama visited Ground Zero, the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack in New York Thursday, four days after the U.S. military killed the mastermind behind the terrorist act. Though he visited the site while a presidential candidate, it was the first time he went there as president.

He laid a wreath of red, white and blue flowers under a tree that survived in the rubble of the World Trade Center and was later transplanted to the site. Then came a moment of silence with his hands clasped in front of him. That was all.

There were no bagpipes or military bands playing or gun salutes or a solemn speech. Many New Yorkers turned out to the site from early in the morning to welcome the president, but familiar scenes of the U.S. president doing high fives with citizens were non-existent.

After a 20-minute wreath-laying ceremony, Obama talked with some 50 bereaved families of victims of the terrorist attacks, firefighters who lost their colleagues to the attack, and police officers. No TV cameras were allowed to film the scene.

His quiet behavior suggested the intention not to use the killing of bin Laden as a political event aimed at boosting his popularity. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said, “The president wanted to honor the spirit of unity in America that we all felt in the wake of that terrible attack. I think the power of that requires no words.”

Before visiting Ground Zero, Obama had a luncheon with firefighters of Engine 54 in Manhattan, whose 15 colleagues were killed on Sept. 11, 2001. The meeting was also off limits to journalists, who had to rely on firefighters and police officers that joined the president.

They said Obama stressed once again the importance of unity, saying the American people’s will to realize justice goes beyond politics and partisanship. They quoted the president as saying, "When we say we will never forget, we mean what we say."

Americans were touched by Obama’s low-profile leadership. Reporting expert views on the May 3 photo of the White House situation that appeared on the front pages of major newspapers around the world, CNN said the picture of him sitting in a corner of the room shows his own style of leadership and confidence.

Cheryl Contee, co-founder of the popular blog Jack and Jill Politics, said the photo shows how the president listens to his aides’ opinions and draws out their cooperation. CNN also quoted her as saying, “For much of U.S. history, the black man has often been portrayed as the threat to America’s safety — the angry man, the thug, the one you cross the street to avoid.”

She said that photo bears great significance because “white Americans now see a black man not just as their president but their ‘protector in chief.’”

When Obama was elected president, Americans hoped that he would truly unite the country in going beyond his racial and political leanings. Some experts say the leadership of unity Obama showed at Ground Zero is a clear manifestation of his potential to meet this expectation.

higgledy@donga.com