Obama Cancels Trips To Malaysia, Philippines Because Of Shutdown

@AFP
Obama Cancels Trips To Malaysia, Philippines Because Of Shutdown

Washington (AFP) – Due to the U.S. government shutdown, President Barack Obama has cancelled the Malaysia and Philippines legs of an upcoming trip to Asia, the White House said.

Obama’s presence at two international summits — an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meet in Bali and the East Asia summit in Brunei — is also in doubt.

In separate statements the White House said Secretary of State John Kerry will take the president’s place in the visits to Malaysia and the Philippines.

Obama had been due to travel to Bali for APEC, Brunei for the East Asia summit, and then tour Malaysia and the Philippines. He was to leave Saturday for the week-long trip.

“Logistically, it was not possible to go ahead with these trips in the face of a government shutdown,” National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said of the Malaysia and Philippines legs.

“Because they are on the back end of the President’s upcoming trip, our personnel was not yet in place and we were not able to go forward with planning.”

But the trips can be rescheduled, and Obama looks forward to going to both countries later in his second term, she said.

Hayden said there were no updates on Obama’s attendance of the two summits.

“We will continue to evaluate those trips based on how events develop throughout the course of the week. For the sake of our national security and economic prosperity, we urge Congress to reopen the government,” she said in a statement.

Photo Credit: AFP/Saul Loeb

 

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

How A Stuttering President Confronts A Right-Wing Bully

Donald Trump mocks Joe Biden’s stutter,” the headlines blare, and I am confronted (again) with (more) proof that the presumptive Republican presidential nominee hates people like me.

Keep reading...Show less
Trump at Trump Tower

Former President Donald Trump at Trump Tower in Manhattan

NEW YORK, March 25 (Reuters) - Donald Trump faces a Monday deadline to post a bond to cover a $454 million civil fraud judgment or face the risk of New York state seizing some of his marquee properties.Trump, seeking to regain the presidency this year, must either pay the money out of his own pocket or post a bond while he appeals Justice Arthur Engoron's February 16 judgment against him for manipulating his net worth and his family real estate company's property values to dupe lenders and insurers.

Keep reading...Show less
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}