When told of the award yesterday, President Obama said he viewed it as less a tribute to him than a “call to action.’’ (Chip Somodevilla/ Getty Images)By Susan Milligan and Michael Kranish
The Boston Globe Staff
WASHINGTON - President Obama was surprised and wasn’t sure he deserved it. His Republican critics were stunned and appalled. Even some of Obama’s allies declared themselves amazed at the turn of events.
Only the Norwegian Nobel Committee seemed clear on why a US president only nine months into his first term should receive the coveted Peace Prize it awarded to Obama yesterday, the third sitting American president to receive the honor.
The prize panel, which deliberates in secret, apparently gave the award to Obama more on the strength of what the president represents than what he has accomplished in his short time in office. They cited his “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation among peoples,’’ adding that “only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world’s attention and given its people hope for a better future.’’
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