Obama gets up-close look at the Acropolis

Before Trump’s victory, Obama’s speech to the Greeks had been envisioned to be a capstone moment for his presidency, harking back to the origins of democracy as he expected to hand off to fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Greek protesters and riot police have clashed in central Athens after anti-US rallies turned violent.

“Hopefully, it’s a reminder that elections matter and voting counts”, he told reporters during a White House press conference.

“This is the only office in the land where you can get more votes and still lose the presidency”.

Before an official dinner hosted by Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Obama also reiterated the USA government’s willingness to support ongoing efforts for a solution to the Cyprus issue.

Clinton, along with President Obama, also delivered remarks about her loss. “Our country is so yearning for change, and I’m happy to be one who officially makes it happen”, she said.

“I think it’s a break-the-glass-in-case-of-an-emergency mechanism. That can serve him well as long as he’s got good people around him and he has a clear sense of direction”.

Obama was expected to visit the Acropolis ahead of his much-anticipated speech before heading to Germany to visit Chancellor Angela Merkel, whom he has described as “probably … my closest global partner these last eight years”.

This is a man who didn’t lack for harsh words about Trump during the campaign.

Civil rights activists, Democrats and some Republicans said Brannon, the head of conservative Breitbart News, would bring racist, anti-Semitic and nationalist view to the government.

Now watch the hypocrisy of this same Republican-controlled Congress when they pass bills that they refused to pass for Obama, numerous same bills they themselves had proposed before his presidency.

The outgoing President said Americans must guard against those trends during Trump’s presidency, and insisted he, too, would speak out against divisive language even after he leaves office. Trump also tweeted that he’d have been successful even under a popular vote system, since he would have campaigned in different places, focusing on California and NY, “and won even bigger and more easily”.

After dealing with our grief about the country’s future, we must move on. Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty says an attack on one member is considered an attack on all members. A vast majority of state legislatures are controlled by Trump’s party, the GOP.

But the idea of democracy never died, he continued.

Yes, he has said some things that have offended some Americans, but he is a human being.

However, we must not forget that Trump is not president just yet.

On Wednesday, the U.S. president is scheduled to tour the Acropolis and give a major speech about democracy and globalisation before flying on to Berlin.