President Obama Writes Polish President to ‘Express Regret’ for Death Camp Remark (Read the Letter)
- Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:45pm by
Becket Adams
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President Barack Obama has written a letter to Polish President Bronisław Komorowski expressing “regret” for saying “Polish death camp” while referring to Nazi concentration camps during a ceremony on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports.
Warsaw has been waging a campaign for years against phrases such as “Polish death camps” or “Polish concentration camps” to refer to Auschwitz, Treblinka and other Nazi killing sites. The language deeply offends Polish sensitivities because Poles not only had no role in running the camps, but were considered racially inferior by the Germans and were themselves murdered in them in huge numbers.
“I inadvertently used a phrase that caused many Poles anguish over the years and that Poland has rightly campaigned to eliminate from public discourse around the world,” Obama said in the letter released by Polish President Bronisław Komorowski’s office.
(Related: Why is the Polish PM Demanding an Apology From President Obama?)
“The events of the past few days and the U.S. president’s reply may, in my opinion, mark a very important moment in the struggle for historical truth,” President Bronislaw Komorowski told reporters.
In case you missed it, here is the president’s “death camp” remark (via C-SPAN):
President Obama falsely identified Nazi death camps as Polish during a ceremony that posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom to Jan Karski, a resistance fighter who struggled to tell the outside world about the murder of Jews in his country.
Karski, who was Catholic, smuggled himself into the Warsaw Ghetto and a death camp, witnessing the atrocities committed against the Jews firsthand. He then took that information to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and other Allied leaders, imploring the world to act.
Karski later became a professor at Georgetown University and died in 2000.
President Komorowski said Wednesday that he knew Obama’s words did not reflect any bad intentions but that they were nonetheless “unjust and painful.” He wrote that day to Obama, and Obama’s letter came in reply to that.
In his response, Obama noted that “the Polish people suffered terribly under the brutal Nazi occupation during World War II.”
“In pursuit of their goals of destroying the Polish nation and Polish culture and exterminating European Jewry, the Nazis killed some six million Polish citizens, including three million Polish Jews during the Holocaust,” Obama wrote. “The bravery of Poles in the underground resistance is one of history’s great stories of heroism and courage.”
Later Friday, Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski tweeted in reaction to Obama’s letter: “Thank you, President Obama. Truth, honor and the legacy of Karski satisfied. Please feel free to send us your staffers for re-education.”
“The issue itself is not over,” Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk said at a press conference in Bucharest. “Let us put this incident behind us, but we will not rest until we will make sure such a situation never happens again.”
Here is the full text of the president’s letter to President Komorowski:
Thank you for your letter of May 30. I was proud to honor Jan Karski with the Medal of Freedom, our nations’s highest civilian honor. My decision to do so was a reflection of the high esteem in which the American people hold not only a great Polish patriot, but the extraordinary sacrifices of the Polish people during the Nazi occupation of the Second World War.
In referring to “a Polish death camp” rather than ” a Nazi death camp in German-occupied Poland,” I inadvertently used the phrase that has caused many Poles anguish over the years and that Poland has rightly campaigned to eliminate from public discourse around the world. I regret the error and agree that this moment is an opportunity to ensure that this and future generations know the truth.
A we all know, the Polish people suffered terribly under the brutal Nazi occupation during World War II. In pursuit of their goals of destroying the Polish nation and Polish culture and exterminating European Jewry, the Nazis killed some six million Polish citizens, including three million Polish Jews during the Holocaust. The bravery of Poles in the underground resistance is one of history’s great stories of heroism and courage.
Moreover, there simply were no “Polish death camps.” The killing centers at Auschwitz-Birkenau, Belzec, Treblinka, and elsewhere in occupied Poland were built and operated by the Nazi regime. In contrast, many Poles risked their lives – and gave their lives – to save Jews from the Holocaust.
That is why I paid tribute to Polish victims of the Holocaust during my visit to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in April. It is why I was honored to pay my respect at the Tomb of Unknown Soldier and the Monument to the Heroes of the Ghetto during my visit to Warsaw last year. An it is why, during the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau in 201, I commended the government and people of Poland for preserving a place of such pain in order to promote remembrance and learning for the world.
I know well the bonds of friendship between our two countries. I was proud to welcome you to the NATO Summit in my home town of Chicago, which is home to the largest Polish community in the world outside Warsaw. As President, I have worked with you to strengthen the enduring ties between our nations so that our alliance is stronger than it has ever been.
Poland is one of America’s strongest and closest allies. We stand united in facing the challenges of the 21st century in Europe and around the world, and I am confident that, working together, we can ensure that the unbreakable bonds of friendship and solidarity between us will only grow stronger in the days and years ahead.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Comments (64)
countryfirst
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:40pmWhy does my name end in ski, it’s because my ancestors could not spell toboggan.
Report Post »I am proud to be 100% Polish, my great-parents came here and worked to create the greatest nation the world has ever know. If Obama gets 4 more, all their hard work and the work of all the others will be for nothing. I will die to defend what they have sacrificed for me.
Taquoshi
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 2:06pmApology or not, I still say “B.O. jest boli go dupa.”
Report Post »VoteBushIn12
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 2:53pm“Apology or not” means you don’t care that he apologized.
Sooo, you don’t care he is humble enough to admit is shortcomings? As in, you’d prefer he be like previous presidents [and current presidential candidates] and deny, deny, deny, deny?
[begin sarcasm]
Report Post »Tell me again how much you dislike the current bureaucratic nonsense. 8)
[/end sarcasm]
lovenfl3
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 4:54pmDon’t forget that he had a grandfather that liberated Auschwitz…..lol. President Obama is completely incapable of apologizing for anything. It’s called narcissism. Make sure you check out this video to find out why the attempt to recall Scott Walker is so important to the rest of us.
Report Post »http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5kwKTxxEy4
Bronco II
Posted on June 2, 2012 at 4:44pmGOD BLESS YOU many of us have family members who came here from communist countries and made America what she is and your right we cannot have four more years of this EVIL that has come on us.My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.May GOD continue to protect and bless all of us when we stand up against this EVIL.
Report Post »momrules
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:33pmYeppers,
I love you Polish folks so much that I scrapped that missile defense shield that would have intercepted those pesky Iranian missiles. But I assure you, Iran is your friend too.
Trust me guys, I am, afterall, The Obama.
Report Post »Blackhawk1
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:51pmI wonder if “The One” will write the U.S. Citizens a letter of apology after Nov 2012 when We The People give him the boot for bringing down a once great nation to the equivalence of Greece? He needs to include an apology to my grand-kids for ruining their futures.
Report Post »happ77
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 2:14pmBlackhawk1, He may be “the one” who’s trying to drive
Report Post »the final nail in the coffin but this has been going on for
a long time. We have to give some of the “credit” to johnson,
carter, teddy, pelosi, reid, schumer, etc, etc, etc.
AmazingGrace8
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 3:19pm@happ77
Agree with the names especially Pres. Johnson. This president is “my least” favorite “ever”.(He caved in about the Civil Rights Act-initial not wanting this legislation) Little things mean alot and when this “jerk” grabbed & pulled up in the air by the ears the dog and didn’t know why many people thought that was a “mean-thing-to-do”(he didn’t think it was wrong) there is “one-nasty-human-being”. That is a dumb reason, sure, but everytime I see a picture or news item about Johnson, his lies, & Nam & his “arrogance” I put Pres.Obama as my second least favorite president. I could type infor about Johnson till the cows come home….just can’t stand the thought of this guy. Glenn has his Wilson & I have my Johnson. LOL
Report Post »woodyb
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 3:31pmObama loves and respocts Poland almost as much as he loves and respects Israel!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What an utter embarrassment he has been to this country!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Report Post »airportengineer
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:32pmNice Typo, too! Genius Obama! The most Brilliant guy on Earth probably did that on purpose, just to make him look more common, like us common folk!
If you missed the typo, here it is:
“A we all know, the Polish people suffered terribly under the brutal Nazi occupation during World War II”
The original article had the same error, so it wasn’t the Blaze!
Report Post »IamWhatIam
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:30pmWhat exactly does he “Regret”? He probably regrets the Pols getting upset at HIM.
Report Post »How about saying “I apologize for saying…..”
infortheride
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 6:14pmHe regrets having to apologize that’s all.
Report Post »AvengerK
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:27pmTypical Obama wait until the political fallout is too much and then react. Same thing happened with his “sounding board for his conscience” that he “can no more disown than his own white grandmother”…Jerry Wright.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 3:15pmPoor Barry, how was he to know? All white people look like Nazis to him.
Report Post »dublinthewagons
Posted on June 2, 2012 at 6:26am1,000 to 1. Obama didn’t write the letter, a staffer did and he signed it without reading it.
Report Post »His drug use finally shows.
2SENSEWORTH
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:27pmIntellectual scarecrow. Nuff said.
Report Post »Philo Beddoe
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:27pm“Regret”?
How about “I’m sorry”
But then again, being a politician, saying I’m sorry for inferring Poland was exterminating Jews during WWII cannot be said,
Saying I‘m sorry to Afghanistan for killing islamicist’s, who want to kill all of us is ok.
Report Post »go2gym
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:27pm“Poland is one of America’s strongest and closest allies”…………………one of his weakest and most used lines, for every friend of America. All are #1.
Report Post »jackact
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:31pmGood point.
Report Post »Blackhawk1
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 2:23pmObama should have wrote “Poland used to be one of America’s strongest and closest allies” until I lied my way into becoming POTUS.
Report Post »KickinBack
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:26pmI believe the blaze posted this vid several months ago, but it’s worth another go around.
To one of our “strongest and closest allies.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erYpXzE9Pxs
Report Post »jackact
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:26pmHere is the scary part; Obama was reading, verbatim, from his trusty teleprompter.
Report Post »So the question remains – are ‘average’ Americans getting smarter while ‘Ivy League’ graduates are becoming dumber?
So much for the elite ruling class.
I’ll ask again, Mr. President where are your college transcripts?
FEMALL
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:22pmSo sorry. After the election I will be more flexible to pull down all missile defenses against the Russians leaving your borders wide open..like America’s.
Sincerely….
Report Post »dinadp
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:21pmObama is a “dupa”. That’s Polish for as$.
Report Post »airportengineer
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:19pmOf course, Obama just has to add in his letter that:
“Poland is one of America’s strongest and closest allies”
Obama, the Broken Record! The most brilliant man that the US has had as President, and he is just so bored with the job that he repeats the same thing over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over because:
Report Post »Nobody else understands him (their so stupid), that he has to repeat everything that he says so us common folk can understand!
mcsledge
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:14pmI guess the teleprompter wasn’t working. That‘s when Obama’s true inner colors shine.
Report Post »dsm
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:14pmThere’s that phrase “one of our closest and strongest allies”. He says that about every country. It doesn’t mean anything and it is designed not to mean anything.
Report Post »mike_trivisonno
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:32pmObama doesn’t know where Poland is. Obama is a clown.
Report Post »biohazard23
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:10pmGee, I thought he was the smartest guy in the world. How could he possibly have made such a mistake?? He must have had an Evan Baxter moment with the teleprompter.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:06pm“I know well the bonds of friendship between our two countries. I was proud to welcome you to the NATO Summit in my home town of Chicago, which is home to the largest Polish community in the world outside Warsaw. As President, I have worked with you to strengthen the enduring ties between our nations so that our alliance is stronger than it has ever been.”
I,I,I .. typical Obama …“stronger than it has ever been” — what a piece of work … he has made EVERYTHING worse! Especially with our friends and allies.
Report Post »Rocket123
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:06pmCrocodile tears.
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/301474/president-obama-shuns-lech-walesa-rory-cooper
Report Post »lsf1953
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:01pmIt really does not make any difference if he sent an apology letter, the harm has already been inflicted. The truth of the matter is, this president and gis staff are totally oblivious of world affairs. Even the Polish Foreign Minister knew this, that’s why he tweeted for Obama to get his staffers some re-education on this issue.
Report Post »RLTW
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:41pmI’d take it further and say Obama hates the fact that he even has to deal with past history, he has no time for history, truth and fact. He’s working too hard rewriting and fixing it to his heart’s desire.
Report Post »thegreatcarnac
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:59pmObama wrote also:
Report Post »P.S. Thank you for giving me the oppurtunity to grovel and to apologize for myself and the US since that is something I love to do. Also,…our investigation of the matter proved that George Bush sneaked in and put that phrase. ‘Polish concentration camps’, on my teleprompter to make me mess up.
lsf1953
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:58pmIt does not make any difference if Obama sent an apology letter, the damage has been inflicted. He and his staffers need to be, in the words of the Polish Foreign Minister, need to be re-educated. Obama’s speech was not really a faux pas, it was purely a lack of knowledge in world affairs. Sad to say, but this president has too many gaffes under his belt, but the mainstream media seems to be oblivious of these gaffes.
Report Post »GENEPAGLIARI
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:57pmObama is Bushe’s fault.
Report Post »I SPY
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:57pmLol, yea right. Obama neither wrote or even ever read that letter.
Report Post »Popp40
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 1:08pmExactly……
Report Post »HDbkrst69
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 2:11pmHard to swallow obuma would actually take responsiblity for his wording when he has done nothing but blame others for his tyranny and bad decisions. Someone in his Adm. wrote the letter for him and stamped his name. I mean really, why would he start now to take responsiblity for his actions? Sure, election time is around the corner, but damage to this Country and our Allies, he and his Adm. of Tryants created, is already done. Time for all of them to be ousted from the rental on Pennsylvania Ave.
Report Post »Psychosis
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:57pmbs
inadvertently my a$$
how about he is a run of the mill dumb a$$ , and this , along with his 57 states just shows that affirmative action is the only education this man has ever truly experienced
Report Post »Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
Posted on June 1, 2012 at 12:53pmBut I thought yesterday Carney or Axelrod stated the president wouldn’t appologize and stood by the Factual use of “Polish Death Camps”. Now I am confused, or the Admin. own people are. Which lie is true?
Report Post »