President Obama should invite dick’n’dub. Then have an emergency landing in Spain where Airforce One has to be evacuated. Then notify the authorities. Best rendition scenario ever.
From an article in WaPo…
“Don’t look now, but Barack Obama is suddenly popular”
The trump effect! Makes a great president, look even more popular!
Then President Obama’s approval numbers would be even higher!
“President Barack Obama departed Saturday on a weeklong, 16,000-mile trip to Asia, part of his effort to pay more attention to the region and boost economic and security cooperation.”
…
Obama’s final year in office is heavy with foreign travel as he conducts what amounts to a long, global farewell tour."
That’s not exactly how I would describe a trip to represent the US at the G-7 Summit, or to firm up diplomatic and security relations with our strongest Asian partner, or to set the stage for ratification of the largest trade agreement in world history.
But then, I’m not a passive-aggressive scribbler at the Associated Press…
The other day, Bloomberg editorialized in favor of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. In a departure from previous commentary focused on the economy, jobs and trade, it focused on the strategic benefits of TPP:
"For Congress, in a year when voters of both parties are worried about globalization, the political cost of ratifying the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal may seem prohibitive. But the economic case for the pact is convincing. And in Southeast Asia, the strategic costs of not approving it are high – and rising fast.
Free Trade Feud
As the world anticipates an international court verdict against China’s expansive maritime claims, tensions in the South China Sea are increasing. China has vowed to defy any adverse ruling. And nervous countries in the region are wondering whether they can count on the U.S. to resist China’s territorial expansionism.
The best way for the U.S. to reassure these nations is to strengthen its commercial ties to the region. After years of hard negotiations and painful compromises all around, the TPP has become the most important test of American commitment to Asia – a “demonstration with substance,” as Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong put it recently.
The deal would bind the U.S. economy more closely with those in the region. It would be a magnet for Thailand, Indonesia and other countries that aren’t yet members. And it would convince Asian nations, far more than words can, that the U.S. has interests in the region it’s willing to defend.
The deal would also boost the U.S. economy, presenting the other signatories with a vibrant source of demand for their goods. And passage of the TPP, in the face of political attacks, would help convince doubters that the U.S. remains capable of constructive cooperation both within Washington and with the world.
Some countries wary of China’s actions in the South China Sea have been quietly pushing for a bit more gunboat diplomacy from the U.S. In truth, however, America’s military options are limited: If U.S. Navy ships patrolling the region were to act more aggressively, by conducting military activities very near China’s man-made islands, China could be expected to respond with equal boldness – by declaring an air-defense zone over the disputed area, for example, or by reclaiming land at Scarborough Shoal, less than 140 miles from the Philippines.
A successful trade deal wouldn’t directly set the U.S. and China against each other. One day, in fact, China should be allowed to join the pact. In contrast, the cost of defending U.S. interests in the Pacific with battleships and bombers alone is considerable and probably not sustainable over the long term. Congress should factor that, too, into its political calculations on the TPP."
Unlike YOU SHEEPLE, we Teabaggers have EDUCATED ourselves to understand the REAL story: This is ALL about Barack HUUUSSSSSSEEEEEINNNN Obama being more comfortable with the gay Muslims in Japan and the Vietnamese communists. First he abandoned our POWs by turning tail in Vietnam, now he goes to drink the blood of our fallen heroes with Hanoi Jane! Thanks, Obummer!
Damn I still don’t know the names of most of the 2014 Republican senators. It took me long enough to catch on to the 2010 group.
I am on board for TPP mainly because I trust this President. I also agree that these countries will be trading with China if not us and like it or not in a global economy opening up trade is good.
Agree, and just like the finalization of the Iran nuclear deal ended reasonable opposition, I hope that a discussion in Congress will dispel the myths about this trade deal.
I feel that the TPP is the final piece of President Obama’s agenda – which includes healthcare reform, banking reform, action on climate action, nuclear non-proliferation – to correct longstanding problems.
This would expand our markets to a fast-growing region and counteract China’s territorial ambitions while upholding support for worker’s rights, human rights, and environmental protections.
I hope that the TPP won’t become a wedge issue for Democrats, as some are saying the best way to get it passed would be in the lame duck session after the election. That would give an opening to opponents who would then argue that it was a backroom deal cut by politicians with no more accountability to the public.
Absolutely. Just because past trade deals had flaws, this one seems to have much more good and safeguards. As the President says, does anyone believe after all the hard work he has done on the economy, he would negotiate a deal that would wreck the economy,