Sarkozy: 'Netanyahu, I can't stand him. He's a liar...' Obama: 'You're sick of him, but I have to deal with him every day...'

Nicolas Sarkozy was last night embroiled in a diplomatic row after being overheard calling Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu a liar.

Unaware that journalists were listening to their private conversation, the French leader told Barack Obama: ‘Netanyahu, I can’t stand him. He’s a liar.’

To make matters worse, the U.S. President replied: ‘You are sick of him, but I have to deal with him every day.’



Child's play: President Barack Obama seemed oblivious to the breaking scandal visits a classroom at Yeadon Regional Head Start Center in Yeadon, Pennsylvania yesterday

Going about his business: French President Nicolas Sarkozy (C) welcomes Benin's President Thomas Boni Yayi at the Elysee Palace in Paris yesterday

The remarks were picked up at the G20 summit in Cannes last week on headsets that were about to be used for the translation of a news conference.

Several French-speaking journalists overheard the comments but did not report them.

Mr Sarkozy’s office had asked them not to use the headsets until the conference began, and the comments were deemed private by French media standards.

Problems: A private exchange between French president Nicolas Sarkozy,and US president Barack Obama about Israelii prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was overheard was caught on an open mic

Ears burning: Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the topic of the not-so-secret discussion between Sarkozy and Obama

Happier days: Back in May the pair held hands when Netanyahu came to Paris for a visit

However, the French news website Arret Sur Images and several Israeli newspapers reported them yesterday.

Mr Sarkozy has been credited with improving relations between France and Israel, but has been critical of Mr Netanyahu’s determination to build Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Observers in Israel and Rightwing U.S. politicians fear the exchange exposes anti-Israeli bias among European leaders and Mr Obama, a Democrat.



Last night, U.S. Republican Congressman Michael Grimm urged Mr Obama to apologise for his ‘disgraceful’ remarks.



He said: ‘I find President Obama’s criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu highly offensive and call on him to issue a formal apology on behalf of the American people.



'Whether the microphones are on or off, the message to our allies in Israel should always remain the same – “We stand with you”.’

Mr Obama’s candour is likely to cost Jewish American votes in next year’s presidential election. He has already alienated many pro-Israeli voters by publicly criticising Mr Netanyahu.

Meanwhile, Mr Netanyahu has cultivated close ties with Mr Obama’s opponents and is believed to consider him naive.



After a meeting in the Oval Office this year, he lectured the U.S. President on his view of Middle East realities as cameras showed Mr Obama listening glumly.

OBAMA'S INSULTS COULD LOSE HIM MORE JEWISH VOTERS IN U.S. President Obama's disparaging comments about the Israeli PM are unlikely to help his attempts to win over the Jewish vote in the run-up to next year's election.

The President as been dogged by accusations that he is anti-Israeli and the criticism has been blamed by some for the Democrats' most recent electoral losses.

Earlier this year Bob Turner became the first Republican to win the two-fifths Jewish district of New York City following the resignation of disgraced congressman Anthony Weiner.

And a recent poll showed a dramatic fall in Obama's approval rating among Jewish Americans, down from 68 per cent in May to 54 per cent in September.

OTHER GAFFES CAUGHT ON OPEN MICROPHONES

George Bush and Tony Blair

Bush was prone to verbal gaffes throughout his time in the White House and dropped all formality at the G8 conference in Russia in 2006, when he greeted then British prime minister Tony Blair with the words: 'Yo Blair - how are you doing?’

He added a similarly eloquent comment on the Middle East peace process: 'The thing is that what they need to do is get Syria to get Hizbollah to stop doing this s*** and it's over.'

During his 2000 campaign, Bush dubbed a New York Times reporter a ‘major league a**hole just before a speech to Vice-President Dick Cheney, whose response (‘big time’) was also picked up.



Gordon Brown

The former British prime minister let his guard slip on the campaign trail during the last election when he was overheard calling one elderly Labour voter ‘a bigot’.

Mr Brown had chatted to pensioner Gillian Duffy for five minutes during which she heckled the politician about immigration to the UK.

After he climbed into his car, and unaware his microphone was still on, he said: ‘That was a disaster. Should never have put me with that woman. Whose idea was that? She’s just a sort of bigoted woman who says she used to be Labour.’



Ronald Reagan

Shortly before making a televised statement in 1984, President Reagan checked a microphone by joking: ‘My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.’

The comments, broadcast around the world at the height of the Cold War, received a frosty reception in Moscow.



Jesse Jackson

Reverend Jesse Jackson offered a grovelling apology in 2008 after making ‘regretfully crude’ remarks about then Democratic hopeful Barack Obama.

Mr Jackson was caught ahead of a live interview when discussing the question of Obama's speeches on morality made in black churches. He said he thought there were other key issues facing the black community, such as unemployment and crime.

The reverend added: ‘See, Barack been, um, talking down to black people on this faith based... I want to cut his nuts off... Barack... he's talking down to black people.’



Prince Charles

With the PR fairytale that is Prince William and Kate, it would be easy to forget the British royals don’t always come off so well. During a photoshoot on the Swiss ski slopes in 2005, Prince Charles was overheard by a mike muttering to his sons about a reporter. ‘Bloody people, I can't bear that man. I mean, he is so awful, he really is,’ the heir to the throne said.



