France wants Obama to run for president of France

The Hill wrote:French fans to Obama: Run for president here
BY MARK HENSCH - 02/23/17

A group of voters in France is urging former President Obama to run in the French presidential election this spring.

“At a time when France is about to vote massively for the extreme right, we can still give a lesson of democracy to the planet by electing a French President, a foreigner,” the French website for “OBAMA17” reads, ABC News first reported on Thursday.

"[It’s] because he has the best resume in the world,” the site, which is not connected with Obama, continues.

ABC said OBAMA17 posters have been spotted across Paris, and the group’s website has a petition begging Obama to enter the race.

The group is jockeying for 1 million signatures, even though Obama is not French and France requires its presidential candidates to be natives.

“We started dreaming about this idea two months before the end of Obama’s presidency,” an OBAMA17 spokesman told ABC. "We dreamed about this possibility to vote for someone we really admire, someone who could lead us to project ourselves in a bright future."

“Then, we thought, whether it’s possible or not, whether or not he is French, we have to do this for real, to give French people hope…Vive la Republique, Vive Obama, Vive la France and the U.S.A.”

ABC News wrote:
Obama devotees in France hoping for an 'OBAMA17' presidential campaign
By DAVID CAPLAN  Feb 23, 2017

A group of Barack Obama devotees in France aren't happy with the homegrown contenders vying for the country's presidency, so they're hoping that the former U.S. president will step in and run for office this spring.

"OBAMA17" posters have been spotted plastered across Paris, urging citizens to visit the group's website and sign a petition to convince Obama to enter the race. The goal is to get 1 million people to sign the petition.

Why Obama? "Because he has the best resume in the world for the job," reads the website, which is in no way connected to Obama.

While this all sounds good, there is one problem. The French president needs to be, well, French. And Obama is not.

The website also says that Obama could be an antidote to the popularity of right-wing parties in the country.

"At a time when France is about to vote massively for the extreme right, we can still give a lesson of democracy to the planet by electing a French President, a foreigner," reads the website in French.

A spokesperson for the group told ABC News Thursday morning, "We started dreaming about this idea two months before the end of Obama's presidency. We dreamed about this possibility to vote for someone we really admire, someone who could lead us to project ourselves in a bright future. Then, we thought, whether it's possible or not, whether or not he is French, we have to do this for real, to give French people hope ... Vive la République, Vive Obama, Vive la France and the U.S.A."