France summons U.S. Ambassador over NSA spying claims:
"When a telephone number is used in France, it activates a signal which automatically triggers the recording of the call. Apparently this surveillance system also picks up SMS messages and their content using key words," The French newspaper reported Ref. Source 4
Obama and Hollande make pilgrimage
President Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande celebrated the long-standing ties between their nations by touring the sweeping Virginia estate owned by Thomas Jefferson, the former American president and famed Francophile. Ref. Source 2
Obama condemns 'cowardly, evil attacks' in Paris, pledges U.S. Help
President Obama said Wednesday that the United States will help France track down the killers of at least a dozen people during an attack on the Paris office of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. The killings are an attack on the free press, Obama said, and he called for U.S. "Solidarity" With the people of France. Ref. USAToday
The Obama administration acknowledged today that it erred by failing to send a higher-profile representative of the United States to the Paris unity march on Sunday.
"I think it's fair to say that we should have sent someone with a higher profile to be there," White House press secretary Josh Earnest said.
He said President Barack Obama would have liked to have been there -- but the planning began Friday night, 36 hours before the event began, and there wasn't enough time for the "Onerous and significant" Security planning that needed to take place ahead of a presidential visit.
The administration has been criticized for not sending a higher-ranking representative to the event that included 40 world leaders. Ref. CNN
France summons U.S. Ambassador over Wikileaks spy claims
France has summoned the U.S. Ambassador to the French Foreign Ministry after Wikileaks said the NSA spied on French presidents, the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse report. WikiLeaks documents disclosed Tuesday said the United States has wiretapped the last three presidents of France, including current leader Francois Hollande as recently as 2012. Ref. USAToday
France's Hollande urges Trump to respect climate deal:
French President Francois Hollande said the United States should respect a global agreement to limit climate change after the election of Donald Trump as U.S. President, saying the deal was irreversible. Ref. Source 9v.
I think some deals will be respected but I think Trump will not be focusing on or initiating any new environmental issues. He supports clean coal and will be pushing that industry again.
International Level: Activist / Political Participation: 33 3.3%