THAT SICK FEELING – AT 8:01 A.M. ET:  The United States and Russia have signed an arms-reduction treaty.  President Obama traveled to Prague, Czech Republic, an ally for whom he has shown minimal respect, to sign the agreement.  Russian President Medvedev 

We have no problem here with intelligent arms agreements.  President Reagan was an arms controller, and an active one, but the difference is that Reagan believed in a strong national defense and Obama...well, you know.

The New York Times has the story, which contains some curious comments.  Consider: 

The apparently warm relationship between the two presidents was on display as they entered the hall to trumpet music. They whispered and smiled with each other in English as they sat side by side signing copies of the so-called New Start treaty, then traded compliments during a follow-up exchange with reporters.

Mr. Obama called the Russian a “friend and partner” and said “without his personal efforts and strong leadership, we would not be here today.” For his part, Mr. Medvedev said the two had developed a “very good personal relationship and a very good personal chemistry as they say.”

Contrast this, please, with Obama's behavior with actual friends of the United States – Britain, India, Israel, even Canada.  No warmth.  No praise for leaders.  No sensitivity. 

No, the president seems to feel right at home with the Russians.  Considering his past associations, that shouldn't shock us.

And note this:

Warmer relations with the Kremlin worry American allies in Central and Eastern Europe, which were already concerned that Mr. Obama’s decision last year to scrap Mr. Bush’s missile defense plan in favor of a reformulated architecture was seen as a concession to Moscow.

Hoping to soothe those concerns, Mr. Obama plans to have dinner Thursday night in Prague with 11 leaders from the region, including the presidents or prime ministers of Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Huh?  What is this, a mass feeding?  Will there be menus, or just selections written on a big chalk board posted at the entrance?  Will there be a coat check room?   Genuine cloth napkins?

The president should be meeting individually with all those leaders, if only for brief periods, to show his respect, and his respect for the struggles of Eastern Europe to free itself from the Soviet grasp.  But he doesn't have that respect, and it shows.

We'll judge the treaty on its merits.  The body language surrounding Obama's foreign policy is already being judged around the world.  We lose.

April 8,  2010