Obama Says ‘No Lasting Damage’ From Asia Absence

@AFP

Washington (AFP) – President Barack Obama said Tuesday he should have been at twin summits in Asia this week but that he expected no “lasting damage” from his absence.

Obama, who canceled his trip due to a showdown with Republican lawmakers, said he believed that China felt less “pushback” to their positions at the gatherings because he wasn’t there.

“I can tell you, because I had to apologize to some of the host countries, that they understood that the most important thing I can do for them and the most important thing I can do for the bilateral relationship in America is making sure we reopen our government and don’t default,” Obama told a news conference.

“So I don’t think it’s going to do lasting damage,” he said.

Obama, who has tried to reorient U.S. policy toward Asia, skipped the summits in Bali and Brunei after the U.S. government shut down due to a budget impasse in Congress.

The Republican leadership in the House of Representatives has refused to vote to allow the government to stay open and a default is forecast on October 17 as it insists on revisions to Obama’s signature healthcare law.

Advertising

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

If You Think  Kristen Welker Flubbed Her Trump Interview, Think Again

Former President Donald Trump with NBC correspondent Kristen Welker

How would you like to be assigned to interview Defendant Trump? No matter what you ask, no matter how hard you push him, no matter how many facts you throw at him, all you’re going to get is a wall of lies and criticism for not going after him hard enough.

Keep reading...Show less
Donald Trump

45th U.S. President

Donald Trump

On Friday, Donald Trump was in Washington, D.C., to appear at something called the “Pray Vote Stand Summit.” In a relatively brief speech, Trump repeatedly fumbled basic facts, made mistakes about his own elections, and devolved into what some observers accurately called a “word salad.”

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