Source:
Khaleej TimesKhaleej Times
There are victories to be had in Asia, Mr Obama
Tom Plate
5 November 2010
“....Over the next week or so, our troubled American President, fresh from that unmistakable mid-term elections rebuke, will hit the foreign-relations trail. All the stops are in Asia, the world’s fastest rising region that is perhaps slowly becoming its most important...Thankfully, many parts of Asia are not so antagonistic to America these days. Barack Obama should find it a relief to spend time with people who like him. In India, Indonesia, South Korea and Japan, he may even find leaders who wish to work with him productively. After Tuesday’s Democratic debacle, there are fewer of those types left in Washington....Yes, the President’s Asia journey was planned and scheduled long in advance of Tuesday’s national congressional elections, which blew up in the Democrats’ face. But the serendipitous timing could hardly be better: The international arena still offers huge opportunities for Presidential initiative and accomplishment. The US Constitution and more than two centuries of practice have created vast space for Presidential action in foreign relations. No matter how feisty or anti-Obama Congress gets, the Executive Branch is preeminent in the international arena-that is the American way. Obama is still the Commander in Chief, leader of the so-called Free World and our Constitutionally elected numero uno for at least two more years....It is into this arena that Obama now needs to press his Presidency. This is no time to be falling down on the job out of emotional resignation or conceptual lethargy. In fact, this road in Asia is filled with many important opportunities....”
Read the Article @:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2010/November/opinion_November23.xml§ion=opinion&col=Read more:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2010/November/opinion_November23.xml§ion=opinion&col=