Obama Spurns Suggestion That He Return Nobel Because of Libya

Some foreign leaders have called on President Barack Obama to return the Nobel Peace Prize he received in 2009 in light of the U.S.-led attack on Libya. But that’s not going to happen, the president says, according to Politico.

President Barack Obama receives the Nobel Peace Prize in December 2009. (Getty Images Photo)

Among those who contend that the noble thing to do would be to return the Nobel is Bolivian President Evo Morales, who demands: "How is it possible that a Nobel Peace Prize winner leads a gang to attack and invade? This is not a defense of human rights or self-determination."

Also weighing in is Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the head of Russia’s Democratic party, who says, “This is another crude invasion into the domestic affairs of an independent state,” according to the Russian Press Service.

Obama responded to such suggestions in a CNN interview: “When I received that award, I specifically said there was an irony because I was already dealing with two wars. So I am accustomed to this contradiction of being both a commander in chief but also someone who aspires to peace.”

The United States is involved in attacking Libya to help the Libyans, Obama said. “I think the American people don’t see any contradiction in somebody who cares about peace also wanting to make sure that people aren’t butchered because of a dictator who wants to cling to power,” he said.