Apparently President Obama doesn’t hold the same sway over the International Olympic Committee as he does with the Massachusetts Legislature.
Supporter of Chicago bid gets the bad news
Despite a personal plea from the chief executive, the IOC this morning chose Rio De Janeiro, Brazil over Chicago (as well as Tokyo and Madrid) as the site of the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Interestingly, a release from the Immigration Policy Center suggested it’s the United States’ “anti-visitor” policies that may have made the difference.
“While the I.O.C. questioned Brazil on combating crime, and Japan was chided for a lackluster proposal that led it to claim the country’s plan was environmentally friendly, it’s notable that the U.S. was pushed hardest on its immigration policies making it clear that our broken immigration system has officially become our Achilles’ heel in the eyes of the world,” the Washington-based policy group noted.
Meanwhile, kudos to former governor Mitt Romney for breaking with the Republican pack and endorsing Obama’s decision to fly to Copenhagen and make a personal plea for the U.S. entry.
It didn’t work but it was worth a try.
