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Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Barring of writer Tim Pat Coogan from U.S. is an absolute disgrace - America’s greatest friend in Ireland insulted by the U.S. Embassy

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Barring of writer Tim Pat Coogan from U.S. is an absolute disgrace - America’s greatest friend in Ireland insulted by the U.S. Embassy

Posted on Saturday, November 24, 2012 at 07:18 AM

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Tim Pat Coogan

The barring of Tim Pat Coogan from coming to America for a book tour is disgraceful. He was refused a visa when he applied for one for his new book tour.

It is one in a clear pattern of a number of recent clueless decisions at the American Embassy in Dublin at the consular level that defy logic.

Read More: Famed historian Tim Pat Coogan confirms he was turned down twice for U.S. visa

Ambassador Dan Rooney is clearly unable or unwilling to use his own discretion in some of these cases.

Ever since Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith played a stellar role in the Irish peace process by running her embassy with an iron fist, the functionaries have done their very best to keep incoming ambassadors powerless.

Never mind that Kennedy’s role stand suit like a beacon in the annals of American diplomacy in Ireland. An ambassador the bureaucrats cannot control is a dangerous person indeed it seems.

They did not succeed in the Bush era where excellent appointments ensured that many political issues were retained at the ambassadorial level.

That does not seem to be the case today. The Tim Pat Coogan case is a travesty but senior Irish government officials have told me it is by no means the only strange decision emanating from the embassy in recent times.

There seems to be a hardening attitude there to make it as difficult as possible for people to come to the U.S. from changes in how the J1 one year visa program is being administered to several high profile turndowns.

Blink and you might think you were back in the McCarthy era.

Put simply, there was no greater defender of America in Ireland for the past few decades than Tim Pat Coogan, especially at times when the anti-American sentiment there was at its highest.

His pro-American stances, both in his Irish Press newspaper and his writing about the power of the Irish Diaspora were major factors in keeping the American flag flying in Ireland.

He played a key behind the scenes role in the Irish peace process, especially in the early days when his contacts with Father Alex Reid, the unsung hero of the entire process, were vital.

He was deeply trusted by the Kennedy family and it was a famous meal in Dublin he had with Senator Edward Kennedy convincing him of the need for a visa for Gerry Adams that swayed the Massachusetts senator as well as helping bring President Clinton into the loop.

Visiting Irish Americans are always assured of a hearty welcome from Tim Pat and his backing for America and stance against the anti-American rhetoric so often spouted in Ireland made him this country’s prime defender.

Yet this is the 77-year-old man who the American Embassy just refused a visa to come to America too and humiliated him in the process?

Is there no institutional memory whatever at the embassy that can separate and remember a friend? No one who was able to realize the deep insult they had just inflicted on America’s greatest journalistic ally there?

Where was Ambassador Rooney in all this, as we know he was personally aware of the case?

There are so many questions but one undeniable fact. It will be a blot forever on the Dublin embassy that it humiliated one of its greatest supporters and Ireland’s leading historian by refusing a visa to launch his new book on the Irish famine.

Disgraceful is the word for it.

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mikeyjoe | Nov 27, 2012, 09:24 PM EST

It just goes to show you that the Obama administration pays lip service to Ireland. Obama went to Ireland to drink pints and give a speech but he lets a world renowned author be barred from entering the US. It is a shame.

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zyxwvutsrqponml | Nov 27, 2012, 05:52 PM EST

I think it's a mistake to rely too much on the fact that Mr. Coogan has been a supporter of the USA in the past as a reason why he should be issued a visa. The United States is supposedly a bastion of free speech where one's right to take part in an open discourse has nothing to do with how supportive you have been of American policy. Dissenters are a crucial part of a healthy political discourse and unless someone is advocating criminal behavior or violence, the USA has no grounds for refusing them a visa.

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WoundedKnee | Nov 26, 2012, 02:44 PM EST

Is it possible that he was going to be paid for his tour? In that case he would need a different visa than if he was just coming as a tourist.

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IrelandNorth | Nov 26, 2012, 08:52 AM EST

It's not the author - it's the title! If it had been written by Mathatma Ghandi or Mother Thersa they would've ended-up being water-boarded in Guantanamo. Behind the rotating administrations of every great nation is a permanent government called the civil service! It's not about BO. It's about Rockerfeller! And Niall, most Irish are Amerophilic. We just don't always agree with US foreign policy.

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TobyMaguire | Nov 26, 2012, 01:47 AM EST

i'm stunned that our esteemed editor complimented Bush for making "excellent appointments" to keep state department bureaucrats at bay. yet, i am not surprised that the (buck-stops-here unless its today) chief executive and head of state, the real pants wearer, saint Hillary both get off without criticism. And, please, enough of the self-serving thuggery Kennedy clan.

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BigDaddy | Nov 25, 2012, 06:47 PM EST

{The President is not ubiquitous and this paper has yet to do proper reportage.}And in less than 15 words. Such brevity of thought is refreshing.

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sbarr10 | Nov 25, 2012, 01:22 PM EST

The U.S. has now become a giant war machine and it is becoming exactly what it fought against during WWII. I hope somebody can knock some sense into the State Department - I'm still writing letters to legislators asking why U.S. border agents barred a highland fling champion and professors from Guelph University from attending a Scottish diaspora event for St. Andrews Society. And why airport TSA agents are putting their hands down the adult diapers of 90 year old sick elderly women. And why defrocked pedophile ex-priests have been hired into security positions at our airports. This is why I won't fly any more, by the way, despite my desire to attend The Gathering or see relatives in Ireland. I refuse to be manhandled by security thugs just to bring about a false sense of security with procedures known to be flawed.

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Bocktherobber | Nov 25, 2012, 12:36 PM EST

Isn't it amazing? No matter what the article is about, there's always some nutcase itching for a rant about the "Gay Lifestyle".

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kubs | Nov 25, 2012, 12:01 PM EST

Why? Because it's a britkissass nation, that's why.

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dayra | Nov 25, 2012, 07:06 AM EST

They already have Bono anyway, as a honorary citizen of new york.

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dayra | Nov 25, 2012, 06:54 AM EST

Believe it or not the US is a sovereign nation yet they do have things like Irish Month. Maybe they have a good reason for not letting him in, like if he is promoting anti english sentiment, despite him being such a fan boy of the USA. I am sure they have similar policies in the USA which ban or deny rights to other types of activists. Thats politics for you to. Perhaps it would be very interesting to have a look see at the number of Irish people that got Visas that month, im sure it would be substantial which should bolster my point. Being Irish myself at this present time in History, the US is the last place I would consider going to for any reason, its just to risky.

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thetint | Nov 25, 2012, 06:22 AM EST

This article is nonsense. The Kennedy’s are not sympathetic to Ireland – they are totally enamoured by their links [through Kathleen] with the English aristocracy. Ted Kennedy [aka Lord Chappaquiddick] played no positive part in the Peace Process.

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PiperMac52 | Nov 25, 2012, 02:25 AM EST

Of course the article never refers blame to the commander-in-chief, one Bark Obama who ultimately has the final say. It would appear that Obama is somewhat of a god as it relates to Irishcentral. He apparently is not responsible for anything.

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irishpjk | Nov 24, 2012, 11:12 PM EST

wtf We must have produced the most gullible bunch of people in the world; the Kennedys sucked us in, then the Clintons and now Obama. Some of us did wake up but so few it is sad. If it is bad blame the English and G W Bush is second, today Mrs. Clinton runs the state department at the pleasure of Mr. Obama, so why did Mr. Coogan not get in ask one or both of them. Remember the hardship visas that were almost pushed through for the Irish it was former Clinton appointee that shot that down. One thing you should remember is what was promised in order to get your vote and what was delivered after the election was won. The biggest shafting that the Irish got on emigration was from a Kennedy.

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curtisjohnson | Nov 24, 2012, 09:54 PM EST

"The U.S. State Department has been a nest of Anglophiles since the end of WW2. No big surprise that they would be able to pull off a stunt like this. The reversal will be coming shortly. The State Department probably ran it by the London Government's Foreign Ministry."" Well said, pillib04. It is infested with vile anglo supremacists who are unfortunately beyond American democracy in its current incarnation.

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