The American Spectator

Germans by and large were very happy with the speech. They felt Obama hit all the right notes. Some were a little disappointed that he did not emulate Kennedy’s famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” and try to speak a few German phrases.

Over 700 German police wearing green berets with edelweiss emblems were deployed for the visit. They were only required to spring into action once during the speech. A group of six drunken, shirtless young men had gotten a little rowdy and needed to be frog marched out.

The total cost of Obama’s stop in Berlin came to about half a million Euros ($786,000), half of which was being picked up by the German taxpayer. “No problem,” says Simon Gierke. “Even if it cost millions. Still no problem. This is not about Obama or McCain. This is about living together as humans.”

Jens Wieland, another German taxpayer, is equally unbothered by the cost. He says, “More money is spent on much more stupid things. Here at least you get something for it.”