Egypt4u

So now we have President Obama weighing in on the side of the UK staying in the EU, I listened to him giving his opinions on why we should stay in and how it would be better for us. So let me get this right, we should make our own elected government accept and implement decisions made by a European Parliament making laws that override our own. That we should unite with lots of other individual countries and all act in unison when making decisions, all for the better good? That we should allow free travel across the whole continent of Europe and have to accept the same in the UK regardless of how it affects our own national security or our economy? That we should pool our resources including our military which just happens to be one of the best in the world and have it subjected to the will of at least 28 other disparate countries?

So Mr Obama when exactly are you planning to unite with Canada, Mexico and Brazil and pool all your resources? to have your laws and regulations imposed upon you by the majority vote of the other countries involved? To have your military policies and your armed forces come under the control of your mutual partners and give free access to all of those poor downtrodden Mexicans and the drug cartels from other South American countries who after all are entitled to roam freely within your own country.

He has the temerity to tell us that should we leave the EU we would "go to the back of the queue" when it came to negotiating a trade deal with the USA. I would like to point out to him that America has not even got a trade deal sorted with the EU as we speak and it is very unlikely to happen soon and even if it was it is not in the UK's interest anyway. He should also be aware that we have NOT had a trade deal with America for the last 43 years! but the UK is still the biggest investor in America and vice versa, so what is likely to change in that respect?

He certainly is a President that likes to stick his chin out and give his advice, even though he is probably the worse one so far when it comes to having any sort of 'Special Relationship' with this country, in some respects he has been quite hostile, so why should we take the advice of this lame duck President? Does anyone remember the debacle over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill? a multinational company known globally as BP was constantly referred to by him as 'British' Petroleum, a legacy name in a global market, as if trying to make it a purely 'British' problem and totally disregarding any fault or involvement of American companies who actually owned the faulty rigs. He is hardly a paragon of virtue when it comes to following his own advice, does anyone remember his pledge of "closing down Gitmo Bay within one week of coming into office" We are still waiting Mr Obama. He has plenty of things to sort out in his own back yard before offering us his advice. Saying as he ws kind enough to use a British phrase of "back of the queue" instead of the typically American phrase "back of the line" (obviously Cameron wrote his speech for him) I will use a typically American phrase and tell him to "Butt Out"

Good to see that Canada has said we would be at the front of the queue if we wanted to make a trade deal with them.

Horus, I am still 'wobbling' a little bit on which way I will end up voting. I am waiting for someone in real authority like a PM or President of another country to come down on the Brexit side to counter Obamas comments. I did listen to him and thought 'What the hell has this got to do with you' and I also thought that Number 10 probably had input into what he said.

Once again you make a strong case for leaving, even Boris said that Obama would never accept the EU constraints, that we have to live under, for his own country. I think you should post your views to Brexit and perhaps one of them would quote your words to a wider audience than just this forum.....Go for it H

Exactly, Horus!

I don't think my views would carry much weight Grandad.
What people should realise is that anything he says in is Americas interest and not necessarily ours. He speaks from a standpoint of what is BEST for America, so anything he says or any American giving an opinion should be seen in that light. If a banking groups says stay in then it is because they are benefiting by it, not because it is best for us. Of course he wants us in the EU, it is in Americas interest that we have a strong voice in European politics, as basically they have no real clout without us as a conduit for their interests and influence. Take NATO as an example, without us in it the whole thing would be a waste of time, now imagine that we had a European Army as is being proposed and it was decided by the remaining members to support or oppose another country for whatever reasons. With us in the EU the Americans can rely upon the largest military faction (namely ourselves) casting our vote and military support in the way that NATO (America) would like, so with us on the inside both NATO and a EU army would be subjected to American influence and politics. Now with us out the EU and with an essentially French led military force, it is less likely to toe the American line when it comes to Europe.

Lets face it the UK has always been Americas unsinkable aircraft carrier based in Europe and its biggest ally in times of uncertainty. If the UK is not involved in Europe it puts more liability on America to protect its own world interest in the area. We could of course tell America that we are not interested in purchasing several billion dollars worth of Trident missiles from them and we will have to put them to the back of the queue when it comes to buying military goods and they can protect the Northern hemisphere from Russian sneak attacks on their own. I would like to see the reaction if we were to send over a really senior politician or a member of the Royal Family and have them speaking on national TV in support of America opening its borders to Mexico and allowing free travel and work to their citizens. Lets be honest when we started to tell them how to run their lives and what they should do and the taxes they should pay, those ungrateful Americans had the temerity to revolt and start a war with us.

I was never really terribly political however since the coming of Obama and me watching first hand how the man literally 'gave' away billions and billions of dollars, racked up mega debt (more than ALL other American Presidents combined), how he lavishly spends on himself and his family whilst preaching austerity to all others (including his present proposed legislation whereby he and all other RETIRED Presidents would get a 22% income raise for LIFE), how he has polarized everybody there with divisive race practices, how he refused to acknowledge there is such a thing as radical Islam, decimated the military and on and on ...... He IS the WORST President the USA has ever had. I would plug my ears before I'd listen to anything he had to say.

He has certainly set the cat amongst the pidgeons here with his opinions and I would not be surprised if it didn't backfire and make more people decide to vote out just to spite him.

At last we get to hear a well reasoned discussion on our staying in or exiting the EU. It was given by the Home Secretary Teresa May, it was not an impassioned plea, it was well thought out and acknowledged for Pro's & Con's for both sides of the arguments. She started by saying that of course the UK with its strong trading links and being the worlds 5th largest economy would survive outside of the EU and then set out her reasons for staying in, these were not because we would be doomed if we left, but rather the advantages to the UK in doing so. She pointed out that it was our being a signatory to the 'Court of Human Rights' that gave us problems in deporting unsavoury people and not our EU membership, which of course is very true. I did get the impression that she could have been easily swayed towards both sides of the argument, but maybe stayed with the remain camp out of loyalty to Cameron. Overall a well set out and fair personal opinion with both options being considered without the doom & gloom scare tactics of recent weeks.

Contrast that to Obama continuing to try and bolster his arguments for European Unity. He praises Merkel for allowing all of the mass immigration, I swear that guy has a hidden agenda. He then went on about how Europe had been peaceful for 70 years, he constantly refereed to NATO as though it were the EU, implying it was the EU that had kept the peace rather than NATO. It was pretty obvious that he was ****** off by a lot of European countries not paying their fair share of the European defence budget and relying on the American umbrella to defend them, he is of course quite correct.

Perhaps 'The Lady IS for turning'

One of the few worthwhile cabinet ministers IMO.....

Compare her to Nicky Morgan, no contest.

I agree Grandad, I reckon there would be less discontent with immigration had she been allowed to get her way and not be manacled by the Human Rights Act.

Stats flow out of the USA and they do show a Presidents disapproval rating and right now I don't think there is anybody left in the USA who approves of or even likes Obama. It is commonly stated here that he has been incredibly divisive in his Presidency so in any speeches he makes or opinions he shares it is always worth looking for the hidden agenda (cause I'm guessing there is one). Obama has brought the USA to close to 50% of the country getting "benefits" of some sort for minimal reasons. I would take his "wisdom" on any matters pertaining to the EU and UK with a definite grain of salt.

Some recent polls are showing it is having the opposite effect as people dislike having an American President telling them what to do, especially as he would vote for NONE of it if it were applied to the USA.