Obama looks to shore up German relations and honor Holocaust victims

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

President Obama is spending a busy day in Germany. After trying to shore up diplomatic relations, he’s honoring holocaust victims and visiting the troops at a U.S. Army hospital.

This comes after a stop in Cairo and a major speech to the Islamic world that’s still generating reaction around the globe. President Obama met today with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Dresden. The charming city was bombed to cinders in World War II and it was there that both leaders played down reports their alliance has gone cold.

“The relationship not only between our two countries, but our two governments is outstanding,” said the President.

The President’s German trip includes a stop at the Buchenwald Concentration Camp then he heads to France for the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Before Germany, the president reached out to the Muslim world in a speech in Cairo.

“And this cycle of suspicion and discord must end,” the President said.

While the speech was largely welcomed, there were mixed reactions to his calls for an Israeli-Palestinian peace among Palestinians and Israelis alike. Today he acknowledged the difficulties and the stakes.

“But I’m confident that if we stick with it having started early that we can make some progress this year,” the President said.

President Obama, trying to make a little history on a trip intended to honor it.

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