US President Barack Obama barely mentioned foreign policy in his 65-minute State of the Union address on Tuesday and dealt with the Asian-Pacific region in less than a sentence.
He said the US should “continue to focus” on the Asia-Pacific, but offered no new policies or plans, or even a comment on the state of play of his much-heralded “rebalancing” to the region.
The annual speech, delivered before both houses of the US Congress, is generally considered to be one of the best opportunities for the White House to explain its priorities for the year ahead to the US public.
In a briefing of the foreign press given a few hours before the speech, American University history professor Allan Lichtman said that foreign policy would definitely take a backseat to domestic policy at a time of economic and employment problems at home.
“Truth is, Americans don’t give a darn about foreign policy,” he said.
He correctly predicted that the “pivot to Asia” would not be mentioned.
“I think the pivot to Asia is real — Obama knows how important relations with China and Japan, and other parts of Asia are,” Lichtman said.
The president was unlikely to discuss Asia, he said, “but you shouldn’t read anything into that.”
Obama did briefly talk about problems with Iran and its nuclear program, and he spent a minute or two on Syria, Israel and Afghanistan. However, he put forward no new foreign policy ideas.
The Brookings Institution released a memo it sent to the president last week (when the speech was being prepared) in which academics, including former American Institute in Taiwan chairman Richard Bush, recommended that the White House announce the launch of a concerted diplomatic effort to mitigate the risks of conflict between Asian powers in the South China Sea and East China Sea. It also recommended that Obama “personally engage” Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to emphasize there would be “serious consequences” if China pursued its interests through military means.
A group of foreign policy experts who have formed an organization called “Foreign Policy Initiative” released a list of five issues they hoped Obama would address in his State of the Union speech.
They said it was “essential” that Obama make clear to China that the US would stand firm with its Asian allies and partners “in the face of Beijing’s bullying.”
A Wall Street Journal — NBC News poll issued just before the speech showed that the nation was “increasingly worried” about Obama’s abilities, dissatisfied with the economy and fearful for the country’s future.
“Since the rise of modern polling in the 1930s, only George W. Bush has begun his sixth year in the White House on rockier ground than Mr Obama,” the Wall Street Journal said.
TRAFFIC SAFETY RULES: A positive result in a drug test would result in a two-year license suspension for the driver and vehicle, and a fine of up to NT$180,000 The Ministry of Transportation and Communications is to authorize police to conduct roadside saliva tests by the end of the year to deter people from driving while under the influence of narcotics, it said yesterday. The ministry last month unveiled a draft of amended regulations governing traffic safety rules and penalties, which included provisions empowering police to conduct mandatory saliva tests on drivers. While currently rules authorize police to use oral fluid testing kits for signs of drug use, they do not establish penalties for noncompliance or operating procedures for officers to follow, the ministry said. The proposed changes to the regulations require
The Executive Yuan yesterday announced that registration for a one-time universal NT$10,000 cash handout to help people in Taiwan survive US tariffs and inflation would start on Nov. 5, with payouts available as early as Nov. 12. Who is eligible for the handout? Registered Taiwanese nationals are eligible, including those born in Taiwan before April 30 next year with a birth certificate. Non-registered nationals with residence permits, foreign permanent residents and foreign spouses of Taiwanese citizens with residence permits also qualify for the handouts. For people who meet the eligibility requirements, but passed away between yesterday and April 30 next year, surviving family members
Taiwanese officials are courting podcasters and influencers aligned with US President Donald Trump as they grow more worried the US leader could undermine Taiwanese interests in talks with China, people familiar with the matter said. Trump has said Taiwan would likely be on the agenda when he is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) next week in a bid to resolve persistent trade tensions. China has asked the White House to officially declare it “opposes” Taiwanese independence, Bloomberg reported last month, a concession that would mark a major diplomatic win for Beijing. President William Lai (賴清德) and his top officials
The German city of Hamburg on Oct. 14 named a bridge “Kaohsiung-Brucke” after the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung. The footbridge, formerly known as F566, is to the east of the Speicherstadt, the world’s largest warehouse district, and connects the Dar-es-Salaam-Platz to the Brooktorpromenade near the Port of Hamburg on the Elbe River. Timo Fischer, a Free Democratic Party member of the Hamburg-Mitte District Assembly, in May last year proposed the name change with support from members of the Social Democratic Party and the Christian Democratic Union. Kaohsiung and Hamburg in 1999 inked a sister city agreement, but despite more than a quarter-century of
RSS