We’ve reported before on President Obama’s knack for insulting our friends across the pond, potentially harming the “Special Relationship” we’ve had with Britain ever since Winston Churchill ascended to power at Westminster and contacted FDR.

First Obama returned the bust of Churchill which was in the Oval Office, a gift from the UK.  Then, he gave DVDs to Gordon Brown as a present during Brown’s state visit to the US (the DVDs aren’t compatible with British DVD players).  In finding a place to stow Uighur prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, he worked directly with Bermuda officials, ignoring the British foreign secretary, which is analogous to Canada working directly with Montana about an extradition issue. As prisoners were en route, the Brits found out. Foreign Secretary David Miliband was aghast and immediately protested the transfer.

Now, Obama has “dissed” the most likely candidate for prime minister, David Cameron. Since the Labour Party lost the last national elections by the widest margin since 1918 (when the party was in its infancy), Brown’s most likely successor is Mr Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party. So Obama is starting this relationship off on the right foot… Right.

Instead of giving the diplomatic equivalent of the finger to Britain, why don’t we try pursuing more conciliatory policies towards our greatest ally? We are, after all, the Anglo-American axis, connected by fraternal bonds that go back to the discovery and subsequent colonization. Especially given Brown is under immense pressure to withdraw and power is slipping out of his hands, Obama needs to be cultivating relations with the future leaders of Britain instead of calling them “all sizzle.”

The irony of the whole situation is that Obama was hailed as the great uniter, the man that can mend fences with our avowed enemies (Iran, Venezuala, and North Korea) and our erstwhile allies (Germany, France, Italy, etc…). So far, he has achieved nothing.  He watched as protesters were massacred in the streets, waiting until the last moment to condemn the Iranian regime for their actions.  Hugo Chavez has increased his opposition to the US, nurturing ties with Russia to create an “anti-US” axis.  Germany seems to be prepared to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and NATO is increasingly unconvinced about the necessity of more troops in that conflict.

All the apologies in the world cannot escape geopolitical realities and necessities and Obama needs to wake up to that fact before all of President Bush’s efforts of creating a stable democracy in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Egypt and of cultivating of allies like President Sarkozy of France, Chancellor Merkel of Germany, and Prime Minister Berlusconi are lost.