The Norwegian selection team: why Obama was awarded Nobel Peace Prize

To understand why Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize it is helpful to look at the committee that chose him. A majority of the five members of the selection committee are on the left of the political spectrum. Indeed in the U.S. they would probably be considered far or even lunatic left! There are two right of center politicians on the committee as well but they could obviously be outvoted by the three others or it is possible they might even agree!

No doubt the majority of the committee see Obama as much more aligned with Norwegian attitudes on foreign policy than was Bush. In his rhetoric at least Obama has been much for diplomacy rather than outright force or threatening force---except in Afghanistan! Obama has attempted to repair the damaged image of the US among Muslim nations and this too may be attractive to the Norwegians who see many of the initiatives for change in foreign policy as in line with their own liberal views as to what foreign policy ought to be.

""""Revealed: The secret behind Obama's Nobel

Barack ObamaBarack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize may have shocked the world at large but a little background check of the Norwegian selection team can clearly explain their leaning towards the pretty-talking American President.

Three of the five selection committee members can be considered hard-left liberals in American politics, and one of those belongs to Norway's Socialist Left party, Politico reports.

And all five people on the committee are politicians selected by the Norwegian parliament, and generally represent a Norwegian view of foreign affairs.

"Obama's speech at the United Nations was received very positively, and falls right in line with the way Norwegians see their own foreign policy," said Terje Leiren, professor of Scandinavian studies at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Thorbjørn Jagland, chief of the Nobel Committee, is a former Norwegian Prime Minister, and a former head of the Norwegian Labor Party, Politico reports.

"Another member of the committee, Sissel Marie Rønbeck, is also a member of the Labor Party......on the Nobel committee is Ågot Valle, a member of the Socialist Left. His party pushes for environmental causes and increases in social spending. """"