President Obama gave a short address on Friday evening condemning the ongoing attacks in Paris, saying the US stood with the French people. He offered American support, but declined to speculate about the identity of the perpetrators.
Watch: Obama’s statement on the Paris attacks
Zack Beauchamp is a senior correspondent at Vox, where he covers ideology and challenges to democracy, both at home and abroad. His book on democracy, The Reactionary Spirit, was published 0n July 16. You can purchase it here.
“It’s an attack not just on Paris, not just on the people of France, but on all of humanity,” the president said. “The bonds of liberté, egalité, and fraternité are not only values that the French people care about, they are values we share.”
"Those who think that they can terrorize the people of France or the values that they stand for are wrong," he added.
His remarks on the nature of the attack and the perpetrators, however, were quite measured. "We don't yet know all of the details of what happened," he cautioned, adding that he would not yet call French President François Hollande, as "he's very busy at the moment." But he said he expected they would speak later.
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