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Thousands Gather In Berlin As Obama Speech Approaches
Obama's Berlin speech is set to begin within moments.
You can see pictures of the crowd gathering at the Victory Tower here and here.
Video of the scene is here.
Fox reports that the crowd may be in the hundreds of thousands. One question: Will the crowd stretch all the way back to the Brandenburg Gate, the venue that Obama had first eyed?
Meanwhile, (via the Page), Obama got ready for the speech with a trip to the gym.
And you can watch the speech live right here.
Full text and more soon.
Late Update: Speech is underway.
Late Late Update: Full text is here.
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The audience for this speech is in the tens of millions....
July 24, 2008 1:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Greg, commenter ami in deutschland confirmed that it does stretch to Brandenburg Gate in the earlier thread!
I don't know if everyone in the States is already getting coverage of the Berlin event, but you can watch a live stream of it here:
http://www.tagesschau.de/multimedia/livestreams2/index.html
The street is packed from the column all the way to the Brandenburger Gate -- Wow!
Posted by ami_in_deutschland
July 24, 2008 12:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
July 24, 2008 2:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, the crowd definitely likes him - a lot.
July 24, 2008 1:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Berlin Airlift - guaranteed to please that crowd!
July 24, 2008 1:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
He should crowd surf to the Gate at the end.
July 24, 2008 1:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
He is so relaxed, wow, that is amazing.
July 24, 2008 1:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes.
He's the coolest person who ever ran (in all its senses, LOL) I think. It amazes me - I could never do that.
July 24, 2008 1:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
God I love this man.
July 24, 2008 1:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is the first time I've heard human rights addressed since Clinton was prez.
He is just killing me - the real uniter.
July 24, 2008 1:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
Damn. And me stuck in the office with no audio. He sure looks presidential in the video though.
July 24, 2008 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's fucking nailing this!
July 24, 2008 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
I am SO proud of this man and the hope he is giving to so many.
July 24, 2008 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
O god, me too, Amelie. I had such high hopes that an Obama presidency could help us more than any other potential administration repair our relations with the rest of the world and he's totally lived up to my hopes and surpassed them.
I think probably when he takes the oath, that is going to be the apex of my ability have pride in my country. I'm so fucking proud of us for getting this really remarkable candidate all this way.
Damn - America is not stupid. We aren't dumb hicks. Thank god we have something speaking for us, finally. I have always hated the Ugly American and Bush is that to the absolute maximum.
July 24, 2008 1:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hadn't realized until I watched this speech how important repairing our relationships with the rest of the world is to me. It really is one of the main reasons I support this guy. Wow. What a moment. Obama just basically told Berliners, "Don't worry. If I'm president, we'll be friends again." As an American, it's just impossible for me to gauge how this will play in Europe. I guess all I can do is give him another 25 bucks and keep fighting.
July 24, 2008 2:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
As someone who has walked from the Brandenburger Tor to the Siegessäule, that's quite a long road - you could fit a million or more in there, even without using the Tiergarten around the road.
July 24, 2008 1:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
From the overhead shots, it looks like the crowd does stretch all the way. I'm just blown away by the entire spectacle.
July 24, 2008 1:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
As someone who has walked from the Brandenburger Tor to the Siegessäule, that's quite a long road - you could fit a million or more in there, even without using the Tiergarten around the road.
July 24, 2008 1:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
this is so cool. Seeing American flags being waved in Europe, how pleasant to see.
July 24, 2008 1:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is totally freaking me out. I won't sleep until I see how this plays out in the world press and how the Republicans use it to attack him. To paraphrase Charlie Brown, he's either gonna be the hero or the goat. A risky, defining moment for the campaign.
July 24, 2008 1:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
If BO isnt President the entire world will be in a state of depression for a few days.
July 24, 2008 1:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
If Barack Obama isn't president, John McCain will be. The entire world will be in a state of depression for four years.
July 24, 2008 1:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
A few days? i'm going to be pretty much permanently depressed if that happens.
July 24, 2008 2:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, bring war to a close, big cheers!!
July 24, 2008 1:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
They're shouting, "Obama! Obama! Obama!" in German. :)
July 24, 2008 1:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm literally in tears here...
July 24, 2008 1:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
100 degrees here, I have goose bumps :)
July 24, 2008 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
My wife is sitting next to me giggling and crying at the same time.
July 24, 2008 2:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Has he talked about US nuclear disarmament in these terms before? I haven't heard mention of him discussing it but it seems like a pretty radical position. (Radical in the political and, like, totally rad '90s senses.)
July 24, 2008 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Give meaning to the words "Never again" in Darfur
I think McCain's cracks yesterday have just been answered obliquely and outclassed completely.
July 24, 2008 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Pure gold. When was the last time you saw people in foreign countries waving AMerican flags without setting them on fire?
Poor Walnuts. How do you compete with that?
July 24, 2008 1:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
What were McCain's cracks yesterday?
July 24, 2008 1:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
It was the McCain camp, actually:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/23/mccain-camp-attacks-obama_n_114486.html
July 24, 2008 1:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, I think the hype may have worked against him here. It was a solid speech, but it wasn't his best - both his race speech and his speech when he declared victory in the Dem Primary was head and shoulders better in my opinion. Also the talk of 1M people was always a stretch, so much so I wonder if the GOP set that bar on purpose.
July 24, 2008 1:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
this was on par with the two speeches you mentioned. the tone of the speech is just as important as the message itself. He came of as confident, a unifer, and a leader in waiting. he nailed it.
July 24, 2008 1:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
he didnt need a rah rah speech. this was well delivered and well toned.
July 24, 2008 2:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
I can agree. I just think if I was a German right now I'd be thinking "That's it? That's Barack Obama?" All the Obamamania news coverage in the foreign press probably created a giant that Sen. Obama couldn't possibly live up to.
July 24, 2008 2:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you Germany, for taking such good care of our next President.
July 24, 2008 1:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you Senator Obama for such a wonderful speech!!!
Another major win for Senator Obama...
July 24, 2008 1:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
God I love this man!
July 24, 2008 2:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
As always, I am left in a state of awe.
What's next, McCain? BRING THE PAIN, SON!!!
July 24, 2008 2:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Definitely not his best speech, but still very, very good. And the crowd was amazing. McCain has no hope of competing with these images.
July 24, 2008 2:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think Obama is doing a great job, but the election is really going to be won in grassroots organizing, and we can't afford to lose focus on this. With all the talk about the candidates this fall, the focus is being drawn away from the organizations that got us to this point, and especially the all the victories in 2006 Senate and Congressional races that the grassroots pulled off. Thats where our real strength lies, in the grassroots, and no one is doing a better job at this than Mobilize 2008, a coalition of MoveOn, SEIU, Environment America, and Progressive Future. If you really want to get involved this election year, they're the best way. Check them out at workforprogress.com.
July 24, 2008 2:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
If McCain gave a speech in Berlin, would anyone go? Maybe if they put a green screen behind him, the volks would show up just to have a good laugh.
July 24, 2008 2:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
That little snot McCain just said, "I'd like to give a speech in Germany on a subject that the Germans would be interested in, but I'd rather do it as president." Old poopy pants.
July 24, 2008 2:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
today mcsame is touring german restaurant uggggh his team is sad...............
July 24, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Lindsay Graham looks like someone's grandma dressed as a man.
I love it that McCain timed his little postprandial presser so carefully. "Forget Berlin--I just ate some sausage!"
July 24, 2008 2:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Fox reports that the crowd may be in the hundreds of thousands. One question: Will the crowd stretch all the way back to the Brandenburg Gate, the venue that Obama had first eyed?"
When did Fox become a reliable source here? One question about the speech...why is the burning light of freedom that led to sacrifices from both of our countries good enough for the citizens of Berlin, but not good enough for the citizens of Baghdad? Are they not worthy of any sacrifice?
July 24, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Maybe you forgot, but Berlin was a stopgap against the Soviet Union, the Soviet Union that could have swallowed up much of Europe faster than the Germans, the Soviet Union that later on could utterly destroy every American town with population over 25,000 in a matter of hours.
But Baghdad was threatened by ... its own leader? Baghdad could have been overrun by that powerful colossus ... Afghanistan?
We saved Baghdad to prevent ourselves from being destroyed by ... by whom, exactly?
I was alive for both the Airlift and for the second Iraq War. I'm pretty sure I understand the difference. I'm sure we all do, when our brains are smarter than our fingers.
July 24, 2008 2:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
McBushSame comment on Obama's speech:
IT IS THE SURGE!!!
July 24, 2008 2:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
The speech was good, and hit all the right notes about rebuilding the bond between Europe and America to face the world's problems. But the speech itself was not the most important thing. The beauty of this moment is in the spectacle of thousands of Germans waving American flags and chanting "Obama, Obama" and "Yes We Can". This is such a far cry from the reception GWB has received in Europe since 2003, and the feelings about America in Europe generally.
Can't wait to see the absurd spin from the McCain camp.
July 24, 2008 2:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
They're Republicans, so the reaction will undoubtedly be somewhere between sophomoric and infantile. Look for something along the lines of, "If he likes Germany so much, maybe he should move there."
July 24, 2008 2:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Spin is going to be "Country First" vs Obama's repeated claim of being a "Citizen of the World".
July 24, 2008 2:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
FYI German newspapers are estimating there were over 200,000 people.
July 24, 2008 2:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Beautiful week.Obama just showed America what American foreign policy should look like. Inspire the world dont bully it. I love this guy.
July 24, 2008 2:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree with those who say it wasn't his best speech, however he hit all his marks and did no harm.
I thought one of the best moments was near the beginning when he was talking about his origins and someone in the crowd let out a (I'm afraid I lack a better description) stereotypical undulating muslim battle cry. Obama paused and looked genuinely amused. It was quite charming, actually.
July 24, 2008 2:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
God, I feel like I've been listening to the down syndrome kid, Corkey from Life Goes On for 7 years and suddenly Shakespear walked into the room! (With apologies to down syndrome kids everywhere. Corkey was clearly smarter than Bush.)
July 24, 2008 2:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
It was a very good speech. Obama is exhausted they said on the news, so I think he did a good job of pulling it off with some energy. His words combined with the picture of all those European faces made me cry. I felt proud of Obama and proud of our country that this man was there representing us. I'm doubling my donation this month...it's time to start buying more ads.
July 24, 2008 2:53 PM | Reply | Permalink