The Media Misses the Boat on Secretary Clinton’s Diplomacy in China

The BBC reports Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluded her Asian trip with a three-day visit to Beijing in which she attended church, met academics, journalists, and entrepreneurs. News accounts have repeatedly headlined the fact that Clinton has made human rights issues secondary to global concerns such as climate change and the economy.

It seems the media is collectively incapable of grasping the obvious that in the event of irreparable global warming or international financial collapse, there might be no survivors left on the planet to worry about their rights.

The most refreshing and balanced report of Clinton’s visit to China comes from Julian Baird Gewirtz, who, according to his Huffington Post bio, is “a nineteen year-old student living in Beijing on a gap year before matriculating at Harvard College in the fall. A Chinese speaker, he is the founder of the U.S.-China Youth Forum, a student-run organization that works to build bridges between young people in China and the United States.”

In today’s Huffington Post, Gewirtz answers the question, What Did Chinese Youth Think of Hillary Clinton's Visit?

Gewirtz writes:

In particular, some Chinese young people whom I interviewed liked Secretary Clinton's use of an ancient Chinese aphorism to propose that China and the United States are "in a common boat," an idea which "must continue to guide us today."

Secretary Clinton repeated that proverb in her meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, and she has emphasized positive themes every time that she has spoken while in China. As a result, Ms. Clinton undoubtedly leaves China with a more positive image for herself and the U.S. in Chinese eyes than before her trip.

It’s understandable that Gewirtz would report some disappointment that Clinton did not spend more time reaching out to China’s young people:

Of course, Secretary Clinton's trip to China was very brief and therefore could include only one non-governmental public event. In deciding to visit a power plant, she chose to emphasize energy efficiency, a policy theme of extraordinary importance to the entire planet. No one can criticize her for that choice--but it was an event for policy experts, not to connect to ordinary Chinese.

Thus it isn't surprising that when I talked on Sunday with some Chinese teenagers getting their morning Starbucks, as Secretary Clinton was departing Beijing after going to church, their reactions were mixed. Their positive feelings were coupled with a sense that this was only the first step in a new, still somewhat unclear direction. "It seems like the trip was successful," said one 19 year-old, quoting an idiom, "the journey was not made in vain." But, he reminded me, "It's only her first trip."

Future trips, and future diplomatic efforts in China, should focus on broadening direct outreach to ordinary people, especially young people. Doing so is the firmest foundation for building a long-term cooperative relationship between what are clearly going to be the two most important countries on the world stage for my generation.

Although our biased media, apparently still suffering from Clinton derangement syndrome, has expressed astonishment that Secretary Clinton has spoken straightforwardly regarding diplomatic matters, Gewirtz is urging more openness and honesty about American policies.

(emphasis mine)

We should be speaking directly to the Chinese people about an America that wants to give Chinese students the opportunity to learn from the United States, not to deny them visas; an America that wants to make its policies understandable, not opaque; an America that wants to continue representing "freedom, opportunity, and choices"; an America whose young people are eager to learn more about and connect with China. We should also be looking for ways to build programmatic bridges between the younger generation in both countries, not simply bridges between government officials and business people in both countries.

Gewirtz concludes his post gracefully:

This is the best way to allow China and the United States to remain in the "common boat" that Secretary Clinton described--not only "today," but also tomorrow.

Too bad the mainstream media obviously missed the boat, common or otherwise, in their coverage of Secretary Clinton’s Asian trip.

A Great Slide Show of a Radiant SoS Clinton’s Trip to Asia

Today’s Washington Post features an outstanding slide show of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s recent trip titled Madam Secretary Travels to Asia.

How Dare Bill Clinton Suggest America’s Number One Hope Salesman Be More Optimistic?!!

The little Obamaites (2755 comments so far) are howling over at the Huffington Post today. How dare Bill Clinton even suggest their idol, who won the presidency by selling hope, should express a little more optimism about the economy when speaking to the American people?

As I’ve said repeatedly since day one of the Democratic primary, I don’t need a charismatic politician speaking in the cadences of an evangelical preacher to give me hope. My hope springs from a much deeper level.

But Mr. Clinton does have a point: the economic meltdown is to an extent a crisis of confidence, and it might help matters if President Obama would express a little more optimism regarding the extensive measures his economic team has been throwing together and pitching to the people.

Besides, the very courteous and good-natured former president, with two successful terms under his belt in which the economy fared well, gave Obama high marks so far in his nascent administration.

Here’s the version of Clinton’s advice to Obama that appeared at Top of the Ticket in the LA Times:

Tone down the economic despondency talk some and ratchet up the optimism a bit. All gloom and doom could worsen the situation. Scare people.

"I just want the American people to know that he's confident that we are gonna get out of this and that he feels good about the long run," Clinton tells ABC's Chris Cuomo on "Good Morning America" today.

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About Afghanistan: Let’s Rebuild Our Own Country Rather than Ravage Another One

Commander-in-Chief Obama

When the extreme left first claimed Barack Obama as its own, it was mainly because he was able to deceive a large number of Americans into believing that he actually voted against the Iraq War Resolution. I’ve been repeatedly shocked by well-educated, upscale Democrats among my acquaintances who swallowed that story. Anyone who bothered to check Obama’s background at all is aware that he was not a member of the U.S. Senate when that vote was taken.

His bragging points came from bravely standing up as an Illinois state legislator to make an anti-war speech to a small crowd at a local peace rally.

Lefties continue to spew venom at anyone who voted for the above resolution for whatever reason, which means they hate a large number of U.S. Senators. In the Left's view only Obama is sacred, and he elevated himself in their opinion even higher when he opposed the surge that finally brought the Iraq War under control.

This week the anti-war presidential candidate (who very cleverly qualified his position as not being against all wars) has announced the deployment of 17,000 additional troops to Afghanistan.

Heidi Li Feldman reminds readers of the occasional practice by previous presidents of using war to jumpstart the economy. But then the Obama Adminstration wouldn’t do that, would it?

Feldman asks:

“How will be know whether the build-up in Afghanistan addresses national security (we have the same Secretary of Defense we had under the George W. Bush administration) or whether it is serving as a locus of unquestionable spending, rather like Operation Desert Shield during the George H.W. Bush term or Grenada during the Reagan years?”

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Larry King’s Interview with the Smart, Savvy, Dignified Former President Bill Clinton

The transcript of Larry King’s interview with Bill Clinton posted at CNN is in sharp contrast to the media’s disgraceful treatment of him during the Democratic primary and general election. Week after week, the punditry presented the most egregious caricatures of Clinton their limited abilities could produce. Of course, they had to do their level best to support the DNC in its attempts to destroy both Hillary and Bill – for example, resorting to outright lies in their efforts to smear them as racists - in order to assure that Obama, the least qualified candidate, would be swept into the presidency.

King’s interview presents the former president as he is: the smart, dignified international leader whose global initiative continues to confront the world’s most pressing problems.

The following transcript has been edited for brevity and clarity:

Larry King: The stimulus bill passed today [Tuesday]. The president signed it in Denver. Is it going to work?

Bill Clinton: I think it will do what it's designed to do. And I think it's important that the American people understand what it's designed to do.

It's supposed to do three things.

Number one, put money in people's pockets who are in trouble now -- extended unemployment benefits, the modest tax cuts, increase in food stamps. That will help grocery stores and other businesses and keep Americans who are good, honest, hardworking people afloat. Watch Larry King's interview with Bill Clinton »

The second thing it's supposed to do is give a chunk of money to state and local governments, primarily for education and health. That is designed to make sure that they don't have to either have big tax increases or lay a million people off. Either one, in this economy, would be bad.

The third thing it will do is to create jobs through existing road and bridge contracts, through rail improvements, through modernization and especially through clean energy and energy efficiency.

So I think that given how fast it had to be done and the compromises that had to be made, it's quite a good bill. And I think it will do what it's designed to do.

King: John McCain and others on the other side of the ledger are saying that he didn't come forward enough to the Republicans, he didn't make them part of this Easter basket.

Clinton: Well, I disagree with that. I think the only way he could have gotten a lot of them to vote for him would be to accept their economic theory. Their economic theory is why we're in this mess in the first place.

King: Do you resent it when the Bush people say that this problem started with you, it started in your administration?

Clinton: Well, they don't have much evidence for that. I always answer, does anyone seriously believe if the team I had in place had been in place for the last eight years that this would have happened? And the answer to that is no. We had a much more vigorous regulatory environment with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We were watching these derivatives. I do think we should have done more on derivatives.

King: Before we move on to other things, should taxpayers be bailing out the automakers?

Clinton: We don't owe it to them. We should only do it if it's in our interests. I believe it's in our interests ...

King: We keep hearing about Obama's BlackBerry -- he's got a special BlackBerry now that doesn't have to be recorded into the White House. Do you have the number?

Clinton: No. No.

King: Would you like the number?

Clinton: I know that in the world that exists today, if you're hyper-busy, you need them. Hillary lives on hers.

King: Do you have one?

Clinton: I don't. I like being able to concentrate on what I'm doing one thing at a time, you know. And I think if I had one, I'm so hyper and always trying to do three things at once, I'd be worse than he is or worse than she is. So I don't have one.

King: What's Chelsea going to be? Is she interested in government?

Clinton: Yes, she's interested in government. She cares about public health. She thinks that America has still got a ways to go to develop an affordable, high quality health care system. And I think she wants to be a part of it.

King: Sarah Palin, net plus, net gain?

Clinton: I think she was a net plus before the failure of Lehman Brothers and the collapse of the stock market, because she gave (McCain) credibility on the Republican right. Through no fault of her own, she became a negative on September 15th, because nobody on their team had any economic experience, and the burden against the Republicans was overwhelming.

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Hillary Clinton's Challenges in Japan (video) including Drunk Finance Minister (video)

Wyatt Andrews at CBS News reports on Hillary Clinton's challenges in Japan. Watch video below. Plus, the Japanese finance minister who was videotaped drunk has just resigned. Go here to see that video.

Watch CBS Videos Online

Hillary Clinton, America’s Top Diplomat, Visits Tokyo

Photo credits: AP

On her history-making first trip abroad, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reassures Japan of its status as an American ally and pauses during her visit in Tokyo to firmly respond to North Korea’s threats to conduct a missile launch.

The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler reports:

"If North Korea abides by the obligations it has already entered into and verifiably and completely eliminates its nuclear program, then there will be a reciprocal response, certainly from the United States," Clinton said. "But the decision as to whether North Korea will cooperate in [negotiations], end provocative language and actions, is up to them -- and we are watching very closely."

Clinton, who arrived here on the first stop of her Asian tour Monday, also surprised the embattled government of Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso by extending an invitation for him to visit the White House on Feb. 24, making him the first foreign leader to receive such an invitation from President Obama.

At the top of her game as a diplomat and world citizen, Clinton also participated in several ceremonial events:

At an elaborate arrival ceremony Monday night, Clinton lauded the U.S.-Japanese partnership, calling it "a cornerstone of our efforts around the world." She addressed a group of dignitaries that included two female Japanese astronauts who participated in the U.S. space shuttle program and Japanese Special Olympics athletes who recently competed in Idaho.

On Tuesday morning, Clinton participated in another welcoming ceremony and a purification rite at a Shinto shrine to former Emperor Meiji. She was given tea and exchanged gifts with the main priests, telling them that she appreciated the message of "harmony and peace that this shrine represents."

Later, she told about 200 U.S. Embassy employees that the notion of peace and harmony was "not only a good concept for religious shrines, it's a good concept for America's role in the world. We need to be looking to create more balance, more harmony."

Breaking ground in her role as secretary of state, Kessler reports that Clinton is the first U.S. secretary of state in nearly 50 years to visit Asia during his or her first trip abroad.