Well, look who’s left holding the bag this time. In his first seventy days in office the President has already put so many politicians and business leaders under the bus that it only makes sense that the only person left to blame for a bad gift to the British Crown is the First Lady.

The excuse given for the tactless gift bestowed upon British Prime Minister Gordon Brown earlier this month – a set of 25 DVDs that because of regional playability would not even be viewable in a standard British DVD player – was that the Obama administration was tied down in the handling of the economic crisis.  The coded response in subsequent British media coverage of the issue and statements of British officials has a variations on a theme of ”We are not amused.”

Now, the President has targeted the British nation with another one of his bombs, this time in his presentation to Queen Elizabeth II of England.  We do not know if the President beamed with pride when he handed over a video iPod to the Queen, but we do know that damage control began before the gift bag was even handed over.  As reported by the London Telegraph:

Earlier, Mr Obama had spoken of his admiration for Her Majesty but indicated that his wife was handling the details of their royal meeting.

The wheels on the bus go thump-thump-thump.

In an attempt to personalize the gift that is one-step above a monogrammed sweater, the iPod was loaded with video footage and photos from the Queen’s 2007 visit to the United States, sort of like a mix tape.  The iPod will be the Queen’s second.  She already bought one for herself on the advice of her son, Prince Andrew.

This pattern of thoughtlessness is no small thing in terms of rebuilding the American image that Obama himself said his predecessor trashed.  In many countries gift-giving is a ritual with extreme significance as we will see when the President begins meeting with Asian leaders.  Gifts establish a tone of relationship. 

Despite my desire to see the current administration fail in the socialization of our country, I will offer a simple guideline for future gift selection.  If an item can be purchased off the shelf at a Best Buy or Target, it should not be handed over to a highly-placed foreign dignitary.  With two law degrees between Barack and Michelle I think they can devise a mnemonic to remember that rule of thumb.

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Read more on this story:

Michelle Malkin: “Dohbama strikes again, disses U.K. Updated: Will the Queen re-gift the iPod?”

Hot Air: “Smart power: Obama gets the queen … an iPod”

Political Punch: “What does one get a Queen?”

The American Pundit:  “Yes, Really: Obama Gives the Queen an iPod”

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