Nobel Peace prize may weigh heavily on Obama

Intended to honor Obama for altering the nation's diplomatic direction, the award is likely to call attention to how much of the administration's agenda -- including closing Guantanamo Bay and winding down the war in Iraq -- remains undone, and to the problematic nature of the American presence in Afghanistan.

The prize also poses political risks for a president routinely depicted by Republicans as more focused on seeking international approval than on defending the security interests of the United States.

That criticism could be compounded if Obama rejects the military's request for an additional 40,000 troops in Afghanistan. Obama has recently struggled over how to proceed in that conflict, and just hours after learning that he had won the award, he met with senior members of his war Cabinet.

Mindful of such perils, the president sought Friday to downplay the significance of the Nobel Peace Prize, describing it as a "means to give momentum" to causes that others also embrace, and saying, "To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve" it.

The award undoubtedly carries benefits. Winning the Nobel might strengthen Obama's diplomatic hand as he enters negotiations with nuclear rogues such as North Korea and Iran.

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