Supporters and opponents around the world were shocked to hear President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize Friday. Even the president seemed caught off guard.
"I am both surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee," Obama said in a speech after the announcement.
He then said he knew the prize wasn't given to him to honor a specific achievement, but instead the prize reflects the kind of world Americans want to build.
"That is why I will accept this award as a call to action," he said. "A call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century."
Norwegian Nobel Committee said in a press release that it gave the award to Obama "for his efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."
"For 108 years, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has sought to stimulate precisely that international policy and those attitudes for which Obama is now the world's leading spokesman," according to the release.
After the announcement, Arab organizations like Hamas and the Taliban along with Iran's foreign minister denounced the committee's choice.
The criticism wasn't limited to foreign opponents of the president. On his radio show Friday, Rush Limbaugh said, "Our president is a worldwide joke."
"Something has happened here that we all agree with Taliban and Iran about, and that is he doesn't deserve the award," Limbaugh said on the show.
Local Republicans also criticized the award.
"I don't have much to say other than it's ridiculous," said Bryan Griffin, chairman of UF College Republicans. "The peace prize is entirely subjective and meaningless."
Republican Party of Alachua County Chairman Stafford Jones wasn't as critical of the Nobel Peace Prize but believed the president didn't deserve the award. Though after hearing the news he said, "What kind of goofiness is this?"
Jones said he believed the president could do wonderful things to bring peace in his term, but he hasn't done them yet.
"In Europe, there is an Obama euphoria that isn't grounded in anything," he said.
Jones was also suspicious that the president was nominated by Feb. 1 - less than two weeks into his term.
But Ben Cavataro, president of Florida College Democrats and vice president of the organization's UF chapter, said the award is an affirmation of American leadership.
While Cavataro was astonished Obama won the award, Republicans' denouncement of it didn't surprise him. He thought it was similar to some conservatives recently rooting against the president's efforts to win Chicago the Olympic bid for 2016.
"Just like the Olympics, this should unite us," Cavataro said.
Jon Reiskind, chairman of the Alachua County Democratic Party, said he believed the award recognizes the relief of the world after eight years of the Bush administration.
"I think that Americans should feel better about their place in the world, and this award is a reflection of that," Reiskind said.
In the last decade, Democrats Al Gore and Jimmy Carter have won the prize.
The last conservative American to win the award was Henry Kissinger in 1973 for his role in ending the Vietnam War.
Only two other American presidents have won the award while in office - Theodore Roosevelt won in 1906 for his mediation of the Russo-Japanese war, and Woodrow Wilson won in 1919 for founding the League of Nations.
"I can't read the mind of the Norwegian committee, but I think this is meant to encourage the president to continue the course he set out on," Reiskind said.
This year's committee received more nominations than ever in the past - 205.
