Obama woos crowd with cúpla focal

BARACK OBAMA has proclaimed himself Irish and told the country it can and will recover from the current crisis, declaring: “Is féidir linn.”

In a stirring 24-minute speech delivered to tens of thousands of people on Dublin’s College Green, the US president said to huge applause: “Your best days are still ahead.

“Our greatest triumphs, in America and Ireland alike, are still to come. And Ireland, if anyone ever says otherwise, if anybody ever tells you that your problems are too big, that your challenges are too great, and we can’t do something, that we shouldn’t even try, think about all that we’ve done together.

“Remember that, whatever hardships the winter may bring, springtime’s always just around the corner. And if they keep on arguing with you, just respond with a simple creed: Is féidir linn. Yes we can.”

The speech was the final event in the whirlwind visit by the US President and his wife, First Lady Michelle Obama.

After touching down in Dublin in Air Force One at 9.30am, the Obamas met President Mary McAleese and her husband, Martin, at Áras an Uachtaráin before meeting Taoiseach Enda Kenny and his wife, Fionnuala, at Farmleigh.

Mr Obama and Mr Kenny then held a political meeting for 30 minutes, in which they discussed the EU/IMF bailout, the recent elections in the North, the immigration debate in the US, and other issues. After the meeting, Mr Obama spoke of the “blood link” between Ireland and America and promised to do everything he could “to be helpful on the path to recovery”.

A Government spokesman said Mr Kenny had not asked the US President to do anything specific in this regard.

But a separate Government source suggested that Mr Kenny would have taken the opportunity ahead of Thursday’s G8 summit in France to spell out the need for a comprehensive solution to the eurozone debt crisis.

The hope is that Mr Obama will push France and Germany on the issue at the Paris summit. Such a solution would include a cheaper bailout deal for Ireland.

In the afternoon, the Obamas travelled by helicopter to the president’s ancestral home in Moneygall, Co Offaly, from where his great-great-great grandfather, Falmouth Kearney, hailed.

Despite heavy rain, the Obamas spent a lengthy time greeting residents before visiting his ancestor’s former home and enjoying a Guinness in Hayes’ pub.

It was then back to Dublin for the speech, with Mr Obama grinning as a fired-up Mr Kenny introduced him shortly before 6pm by saying: “Today the 44th American president comes home.”

Mr Obama spoke from behindbullet-proof glass amid tight security, but neither that nor the weather dampened the spirits of those present.

Speaking briefly in Irish, Mr Obama said he was happy to be in Ireland, before proceeding to the substance of his speech, which hinged on the theme of rebuilding a nation.

He spoke of the huge contribution Ireland had made to America, stating: “You could say there’s always been a little green behind the red, white and blue.”

Invoking the legacy of the most famous Irish-American political dynasty, he said JFK “had made us dream again”.

Both Ireland and America had overcome huge challenges in the past and would do so again, he said.

The Obamas departed Ireland for Britain last night ahead of schedule because of fears that the latest volcanic ash cloud would affect air travel today.