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Obama Makes Historic Call To Iranian President, Apologizes For NYC Traffic
By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 28, 2013
Modified Sep 28, 2013
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White House
By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 28, 2013
Modified Sep 28, 2013
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Yesterday, President Obama called President Hassan Rouhani of Iran, which he called a momentous event. Obama told reporters, "The very fact that this was the first communication between an American and Iranian president since 1979 underscores the deep mistrust between our countries. But it also indicates the prospect of moving beyond that difficult history." And part of the call involved...bitching about NYC traffic.
Manhattan traffic, especially in Midtown, becomes notoriously snarled during the United Nations General Assembly. According to some Tweets (since deleted) that Rouhani apparently posted, "@Barack Obama to @HassanRouhani: I express my respect for you and ppl of #Iran. I'm convinced that relations between Iran and US will greatly affect region. If we can make progress on #nuclear file, other issues such as #Syria will certainly be positively affected. I wish you a safe and pleasant journey and apologize if you're experiencing the [horrendous] traffic in #NYC"
The NY Times reports, "The post was later deleted. But a White House official confirmed Mr. Rouhani’s account. Some details remain murky. It is unclear, for instance, if Mr. Obama characterized the traffic as 'horrendous' or if the word, bracketed in Mr. Rouhani’s retelling, was an editorial aside from the Iranian president."
The New Yorker's Amy Davidson smartly put it this way, "Well, if Obama and Rouhani bonding over their hatred of NY traffic is the path to peace, I guess the city can take it..." Maybe we should get Obama and Rouhani to bond over how Santacon needs to stop.
Tagged
gridlock
hassan rouhani
iran
nyc traffic
president obama
UNGA
united nations
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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