Report: Obama To Speak At Victory Column, Not Brandenburg Gate

According to German papers, Barack Obama will speak at Berlin's Victory Column instead of the Brandenburg Gate on his trip to Germany. Bloomberg reports on the Berliner Zeitung story:

A stage will be set up at the column, a 19th-century fluted structure that lies at the opposite end of a tree-lined boulevard from the Brandenburg Gate, the newspaper said. The campaign will announce the plans for July 24 today, it said.

An appearance at the Victory Column, capped by its trademark gilded angel, will still give the Illinois senator the Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop in the distance.

...

While the Brandenburg Gate has come to symbolize Germany's division and reunification, the Victory Column celebrates Prussia's victories over Denmark, Austria and France in the late 19th century. More recently, the column and its angel were was featured in Wim Wenders's 1987 film ``Wings of Desire.''

Ben Smith references another report from the Welt Online.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed skepticism about an Obama speech about the Brandenburg Gate.

Comments

[SCG]

20 years from now, Cons will be showing up to the same spot, trying to recreate the magic.

[Bluejay00234]

lol so true.

[shel3364]

...and failing miserably

[ProgressiveBum]

LOL. Just goes to show that cons don't have original ideas nor do they have charisma.

[gladys46]

O goes as who he is ... an American success story! JM and his surrogates are checkMated!

[WilliamGossett]

I loved that film "Wings of Desire" and its sequels.

I was surprised that I could understand it while I was not looking at the subtitles. I used to tell German storekeepers "Schlecte Deutsch, schlimmer Englisch." ("Bad German, worse English.") People love it when you speak or attempt to speak with them in their language and not expect them to speak to you in yours.

So much for McCain & others remarks about being infuriated that Barack wants American students to learn a foreign language.

The LDS (Mormon) Church, not a bastion of liberalism, has long ago made their young ones start learning foreign languages (albeit to "convert" others.)

[demfriend]

A blogger on CNN just said because Obama is going on the "world tour" she has become a McCain volunteer. That scares me beyond measure to think some obviously young woman is so influenced by the act of Obama seeing other leaders and Iraq she is going to support McCain. How can one cause the other? She must have missed the many votes that Mac has done to not support women's rights in many areas, not just reproductive. She also must think his jokes about women being raped are funny. And "bomb Iran", "kill them with cigarettes" and his not knowing enough about the insurance companies not being willing to pay for birth control but willing to pay for Viagra. Ignorance is not bliss when it means voting for someone who has also not supported the vets in bills before him the majority of the time. Also ignorance, like shown by Bush, about Mac supporting the new GI Bill when he didn't all add up to someone who is so out there the wind blowing decides the direction they go.

[Trollstakeyourmeds]

Unfortunately, I think a lot of the middle and lower middle class voters are going to feel this way. And believe me, the repubes are fully aware of it. Remember how they painted John Kerry as "too French" just because he had the audacity to attend school over there and was fluent in the language? Acceptance by Europe, is to some intellectually challenged Americans, a good enough reason not to vote for them over here. Go figure!!!

[wm1066]

If merkeL is such a twit maybe he should drop Germany from his agenda.
I'm sure the rest of Europe won't dis him.

[Seattlelite]

Pres Merkel better wake up and realize her shoulder rubbing boy friend will be out of office soon she might want to stop kissing his a$$ and direct her lips else where.

[bluesnot]

She's probably planning to be a lobbyist for an oil company after her chancellor gig.

[vippy]

Merkel was put in office with the help of the CIA who interferes worldwide in elections.
We seen it in Venezuela and in France. There is no way that West Germans would have
voted for an East German - no way! And Sarkozy the same, that lady would have won
had it been done fairly.

[ProgressiveBum]

Thank you for this enticing visual.

[roshni]

There's a lot more to Germany than just Merkel. He's going to wow the audience and the mayor of Berlin supports him.

[darthdarcy]

He should go speak at Auschwitz in Poland instead..t­hat would be powerful..­.

[Crake]

I wonder how that would poll...

[RTIII]

good pun.
.

[Grunty1]

Just keep B'ush and Mc'Cain away from it. That's all we would need, one of the tittering fools at the site of huge mass murder. The joy would overwhelm them and cause an international incident.

[MsLiz]

Powerful in what way? To assure Jews that he hasn't forgotten the events of WWII? To tell the Islamic world whose side he is on?

[MarkieBee]

or the place where his uncle helped liberate..­.Nice try to stir it up Dartharcy.­..no takers here

[venicesurfer]

atleast obama isnt speaking at brandenburg gate. that would be an utter disrespect to many germans who find the gate to be a symbolic landmark. not to be used for campaign speeches by foreigners.

[sherbug]

Well you recite the talking points perfectly.

[bellecloche]

The Dalai Lama was just there six weeks ago - he represents a domestic political struggle in his own country far more than Obama does. He's been on one constant political campaign for decades.

[wizardofoz]

as dummy rummy said this is old europe.

[tel8034]

No matter where Obama speaks during his tour, there will be a massive cheering crowd.

The Republicans are losing sleep and hyperventilating over the thought of Obama's tour.

They begged Merkel to stop Obama from speaking at the Brandenberg Gate, they are whining and complaining about the press covererage he will get, and they are trying to minimize the inevitable large crowds who will turn out to see Obama as a mere campaign rally (even though NONE of these people can vote for POTUS).

Mccain is kicking himself for trying to diminish Obama's foreign relations experience by talking about Obama not visiting Iraq, and counting the days since his last visit.

Now the press and everyone else is focused on Obama, and at the end of the tour Obama will appear even more Presidential than he already does.

When will McCain learn that Obama is a great politician and not some rookie?

[gevan]

Victory? Symbolizing Bismark and German Unification through militaristic means pehaps? Much nicer.

[TrueBlueMajority]

I would rather have him speak at Brandenburg Gate AFTER he is elected president. Then the historic uniqueness of the setting will be more fitting.

[Egalitare]

Same venue, different name. Team Obama is more agile than the GOP wants to admit.

[lovethesinner]

And it's an even better symbol:

"We've moved on from the cold war to an age of cooperatio­n."

Plus, I have a feeling the crowd is going to fill the street all the way back to the Brandenburg Gate, which means he'll get the site in the shot anyway, and it draws the interesting parallel to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech at the Lincoln Memorial. (with the "Victory Column" as a sign of the completion of King's dream coming true.)

For stagecraft, on a scale of 1 to 10... it's an eleven.

GObama!

[TheRebel82]

Merkel is just jealous that Obama is more popular with Germans than she is. Thats why she killed his Brandenburg speech.

[EuroRant1]

Can you back that up with any sources, links or facts?
Where do you people get this stuff ... talk about pulling fantasies out of thin air.

Too much American media brainwashing ... "I said it - so now it's true!"

Please get a reality check, before you barf-up such garbage. Please.

[MsLiz]

I am so embarrassed. All Rebel knows about Merkel is that Bush tried to influence her not to allow Obama to speak at the B. Gate.

Alexander Pope said: "Drink deep, or taste not, the pierian spring. A little learning is a dangerous thing."

[LeftLeanWing]

found a better photo of the site:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3085/2523707061_f4c8fc9915.jpg?v=0

[Paladine]

Thanks for that...

[PAposter]

That's beautiful, thank you. I can't see the Brandenburg Gate in the distance, oh well, it's still beautiful.

[DerAmi]

http://maps.google.de/?ie=UTF8&ll=52.514531,13.350449&spn=0.000726,0.002339&t=k&z=19

I don't think you have the correct picture. The link is for google maps. The Brandenburg Gate is to the east.

[barackobama4prez]

Hey that is really beautiful to look at. I hope he packs it out like he does in the states.

[leftoflennon]

And have American flags being waved in the crowd...

[marymansour]

I think he will draw huge crowds. The Europeans adore Obama.

[megacephalus2]

sorry, that is NOT the 'Siegesaule' or Victory Column, which is made up of several stories of captured cannons mounted vertically, from each story commemorating one of the Prussians victorious wars, and is several stories high.

It stands in the middle of a huge 'round-about' on the famous 'East-West' axis... from the gate to the Olympic Stadium, all as organized by one of the world's great architects, Albert Speer. The column was moved to the 'Big Star' - a reference to the hugh traffic circle that surrounds it - the intersection of several important radials in Berlin from its former / original location in from of the Reichstag on the orders of a German Chancellor who preceded Fr. Merkel from 1933-1945, as part of his unrealized plans for 'Germania'.

It is the traditional western 'anchor' on the 'Street of 17 June' - named for the unsuccessful uprising of the Berliners against the Soviet occupation. It has been the scene of the famous 'Love Parades'. Its eastern anchor is the Brandenburg Gate.

It is probably a better location, as it is capable of a crowd of several hundred thousand, whereas Pariser Platz, in front of the new US Embassy, is not.

[MsLiz]

Siegesaule or Siegessaule:
http://images.google.com/images?gbv=2&hl=en&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=Siegessaule&spell=1

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=Siegesaule&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2